a contest ant wanted for questioning in his wife's grisly death may no longer be in the u.s. the clues that show he may now be in canada. also, the man convicted of bombing pan am flight 103 killing 270 people is free. look at him there. why did a judge decide to let him go on compassionate grounds? also, is she or isn't she a she? how a track star's amazing achievements raised suspicions about her gender. hey, i hope that the day has been treating you well. sit back and relax and tyke a limb tile time for yourself. i'm christi paul. we'll get you informed so you can get on with your day. take a couple of moments and

relax a little bit. let me tell you about former nfl store plaxico burress we're learning here. he'll spend the next few years behind bars this. morning he pleaded guilty to a nuclear weapon charge and agreed to a two-year prison term. he'll be sentenced next month, but the former new york giants' wide receiver accidentally shot himself at a new york nightclub last november with an unlicensed gun. know on the professional side of things, burress caught the winning touchdown in the giants upset victory over the new england patriots in super bowl xlii, but back to prison with good behavior he could be released from the jail there or the prison after serving 20 months. a reality tv corn test ant wanted for questioning in the death of his bikini model ex-wife may now be in canada. that's what police in washington state and california are saying today about ryan alexander jenkins who is canadian. they say they want to question him as in their words a person of interest in the death of

28-year-old jasmine fiore whom you see on the left-hand side of your screen. your nude bode was found stuffed in a suitcase in an original county california trash bin over the weekend. a coroner's preliminary report indicates she was strangled. our fear is that he might possibly be en route to canada. we were able tore ascertain his involvement with the help of the los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported miss fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins was a contest ant on the vh-1 tv show "megan wants a millionaire." police received a report that a man matching his description took a boat to washington state's point roberts peninsula and then walked across the border to british columbia. watch "nancy grace" by the way tonight for breaking news in this shocking case. the latest in the search for ryan jenkins. that's tonight at 8:00 and 10:00

p.m. eastern right here on hln "news and views." investigators were back at office of michael jackson's dermatologist yesterday. take a look at this here. you're going to see reporters just swarming. the lead investigator from the l.a. coroner's office, they had said more than a week ago their investigation was finished, but they searched dr. arnold klein's office july 14th. his attorney says investigators were looking to corroborate their information and that klein was not questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to maintain his utter cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he has done so. he will continue to do so, and i am confident as his counsel that at the end of the day he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that exists out there in the media. thank you very much. >> jackson visited klein's office three days before he died. klein denied giving him any

dangerous drugs. the coroner's office has said it won't release its report on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigation. ailing senator ted kennedy has spent a poignant letter to massachusetts leaders asking them to change a law to allow them to quickly replace him in the senate. this comes amid growing concern about kennedy's battle with brain cancer obviously, although aides say there is no change in his condition. kennedy wants the governor to be able to temporarily appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of his vacant seat to do so. a convicted terrorist who helped wouldor blow up pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, is a free man. you see him there in the white boarding a plane in scotland on his way home to libya. abdel al megrahi served eight years of a life sentence and was the only person found guilty in that case. scottish officials say they released him because he's dying from prostate cancer.

the white house though says it deeply regrets scott land's decision. 270 people lost their lives in the 1988 bombing. majority of those killed were americans, and many of the victims' families say they are outraged that he's been released. so we'd like to ask you for your views on this one. what do you think of the scottish government's decision to release the lockerbie bomber from prison because he's terminally ill? they call it a compassionate release. call us now at 1-877-tell-hln or e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. you can text us, too, your views. send it to hlntv text views a if you think, yes, he should be released so he can is home and die or view b if you think, no, he should not be released. thank you so much for letting us know how you feel. well, polls have closed in afghanistan's presidential election seen really as a crucial test for stability and democracy here. taliban threats dampened voter turnout though in some areas,

particularly in the south which is a taliban stronghold. despite tight security, afghan officials say 26 people were killed in attacks. now incumbent president hamid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has really distanced itself from karzai criticizing his ties with former warlords. karzai's main challenger is his former foreign minister, abdullah bela. he has portrayed himself as the best chance for change. preliminary results are expected to be announced on saturday, by the way. let's talk about the cash for clunkers program yet again because it seems to be a victim of its own success here, and it may be running out of time, yes. for a second time "the washington post" says dozens of car dealers are pulling out of the program. they say they are not getting paid by the government for the money they basically fronted to consumers. >> there's supposedly 400,000 vehicle transactions that happened and only 2% of them have been approved for

reimbursement. that's a very poor track record at this point. >> they are not going to ask for more money for this program at the white house so the $3 billion that's on the table is sort of all that's left, and when that runs out, it's not likely that there's going to be any more money coming behind it so these dealers are opting out, might not be opting out of that much more of cash for clunkers program at this point. >> today general motors announced that it will begin providing cash advances to dealers waiting for government rebates. transportation secretary ray lahood promises the dealers will eventually get paid, but lahood says the obama administration could announce an end date for the program as early as tomorrow. that announcement, not necessarily the end date. we don't know. we'll have to wait and see. a texas police officer suspected of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend let her go after a standoff with police. authorities there found julio reyes and the woman in a vacant house. now he shot at police and dragged her upstairs. she's also a police officer, we should point out.

authorities say he let her go, and then he killed himself. >> it's an emotional roller coaster, and we are happy on one side and, unfortunately, it's a bad day on the other side. >> officer rachel hillsman was not hurt, by the way in, is that standoff. she and the suspected kidnapper had a child together but had broken off their relationship earlier this year apparently. a state of the art dash cam recorded a head-on collision. the $7,000 device kind of works like your dvr. the car swerves into an officer's lane here, look at this, and the camera starts recording on impact. my gosh! it's programmed to save the 30 seconds leadingp to it on a hard drive, and no one was seriously hurt but floyd county sheriff indiana's said they used seized drug money to buy those cameras. let's talk, too, about hurricane bill today, still well identity to sea, and it has weakened slightly actually. forecasters say it's still

sending high swells to the western atlantic though. bermuda posted a hurricane watch this morning, and the storm's center is expected to move between the island territory and the eastern u.s. saturday so there's the trajectory for you. right now bill is a a category 3 hurricane so it's dropped from a 4 as of yesterday. winds are about 120 miles per hour, and forecasters say it could strengthen again to a category 4 tomorrow. a south african track star blew away the competition in a women's race, and now authorities want to know if she is in fact a woman.

live pictures here of vice president joe biden who is discussing health care today in chicago, and he says the obama administration is giving more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical records. in his announcement this morning, he said the money would come from the $787 billion

stimulus plan. the vice president says electronic records will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again and in the process deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering it as we're doing now in this exponential curve of medical health care costs that the public doesn't realize understandably that we provide about 50% of the health care already, some indirectly by the federal government, medicare and medicaid and, i mean, there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> the money will become available on october 1st which is the beginning of the new federal fiscal year, of course. and president obama is taking his health care push to conservative-leaning radio listeners today. in with b an hour he'll be talking to philadelphia radio host michael mcconish. the show will be broadcast in fact from the white house. he's generally seen as a conservative, but he did support obama last year and is an

abortion rights supporter. later in the afternoon president obama will hold a conference call and an online address to help promote his health care plan. congress meanwhile still on vacation but law enforcement trying to get work done at the same time. the senate finance committee holding a conference call today and, of course, the top sick health care reform. committee chairman max baucus says the panel is on track to reach a bipartisan agreement. the committee's top republican senator chuck grassley says he's not so sure about that and doesn't see the kind of broad-based support that the bill will need. cia apparently hired contractors to be part of a secret program to kill top level members of al qaeda. this was back in 2004. the contracts with blackwater usa were unsuccessful and cancelled several years ago. u.s. intelligence officials say the program never resulted in the capture or killing of any terrorists. blackwater came under heavy criticism after a 2007 shooting in baghdad that left 17 iraqi civilians dead.

all right. here's one of the questions of the day. male or female? that's what's being asked of a south african track champion. the same day this south african teenager won a gold medal at the world athletic championships it was revealed she was undergoing a gender test. she's 18-year-old caster semenya and dominated the 800 meters, wasn't even close. the associated press reports her spectacular times, muscular build and deep voice triggered suspicions about her gender. now the tests take several weeks apparently and involve a gynecologist, endocrinologist, psychologist, internal medicine and gender specialist, so as soon as we get world we'll let you know. time to face the facts about facebook. great way obviously to keep up with friends and family, but it also opens you up to some really annoying people apparently. one of our cnn.com co-workers has been pegged to a tee in a list of the most annoying types

of facebookers. they include the ones who post everything they are doing, the self-promoters who keep pushing their blogs and opinions, the friend-padder who adds friends for the sake of having new names on the news and the town cryer who speaks of news and passes it off as 100% legit and then there's the tmi fanatic who shares every personal detail of their personal histories and those who use bad grammar to look cool and the ones who fish for sympathy, and the people who lurk in the shadows of facebook who pop up every now and then just to let you know, hey, they are still watching your page. for more facebook themes you'll easily recognize and get a chuckle over head on to cnn.com/technology. you'll get a good kick out of that in politics pub its talk about the tipping point of issues, but politics had nothing to do with this accident. how this truck in florida ended

up, well, upended.

we have some new information on the air traffic controller involved in a fatal mid-air collision over the hudson river. the associated press is reporting just before the crash the reporter was on a phone with the woman making jokes about barbecuing a dead cat. nine people died when that private plane and a helicopter collided on august 8th. now the controller is on administrative leave. and this wild car chase ended with a boat flipping on a busy highway in east haven, connecticut. the man stole the 32-footer and wouldn't stop when police tried to pull him over. he started swerving back and forth and the boat tipped off the trailer and blocked traffic, as you can see. no one was hurt, but the man was jailed on several charges. hate it when things don't go as planned. here's a case in point for you. this truck mounted crane is sitting in a yard outside

jacksonville, florida, this morning. the crane operator was trying to remove a tree when it tipped over yesterday. now luckily it didn't fall on the house, but it did knock out power to the neighborhood. the crane operator, by the way, was not hurt. that's important to mention, too. the other grandma of bristol palin's baby will be going to prison on drug charges. sherry johnston's, levi's mom, pleaded guilty yesterday to possession of oxycontin with intent to deliver. she will likely get three years behind bars. prosecutors agreed to the shortened sentence since she was using oxycontin legally until her insurance stopped paying for it. levi and sarah palin's daughter called off their wedding after their son tripp was born. economists got a surprise when the weekly jobless report came out today. first-time claims rose more than expected to 576,000. experts anticipated that there would only be about 550,000 new

claims. and the conference board said its report on a leading indicator which forecast economic activity rose again last month. it was up over half a percent, less than expected, but board says the report stills indicates that the recession has bottomed out. wouldn't that be nice. okay. people in india are getting the keys to the cheapest car in the world, but what does it mean for the u.s. ando industry? hln money expert clark howard breaks down how the new car might help your wallet in the future. >> the nano car, the world's cheapest automobile, is now in people's drivesways in india. this car that you can buy in india for $2,500, that's right, a full four-door car seats four people, if you like a fifth you don't, it's now available and selling like crazy and be may wonder why am i telling but a

car only available in india? well, big news. this car just passed the european union safety and crash test which are somewhat similar to ours, and europeans are already buzzing that they are going to be able to buy a car that even with the modifications for europe will end up being somewhere around $3,500. what about us? well, i want you to know for us this is a clear trend we are going to see in the next few years, cars cheaper than you ever imagined, about the price of a motorcycle. i am clark howard. for more ways to save, go to cnn.com/clarkhoward. >> buy someone a motorcycle. get more great consumer advice from clark howard every saturday and sunday at noon and 4:00 p.m. eastern here on hln. we've been asking for your views on one of our top stories today, a man convicted for his role in the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, has been released from

prison. the scottish government says it was a compassionate release. boy, some of you have a very different opinion. your views next. )d)d)d)d)d)d)d)d

a reality tv contestant you see there on the right-hand side of your screen is wanted for questioning in the death of his bi bikini model ex-wife. that's what police in california are saying about ryan alexander jenkins who is canadian, but they are not calling him a suspect here. they just want to question him in the death of his ex-wife, 28-year-old jasmine fiore whom you see on the left. her nude body was found stuffed in a suitcase in an orange county california trash win over the week idea. a preliminary coroner's report indicates fiore was strangled. >> our fear is he might possibly be en route to canada. we were able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the

los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported miss fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins was a contestant on the vh-1 tv show "megan wants a millionaire." police received a report saying a man matching his description tock a boat to the peninsula and walked across the border to british columbia. nancy grace has the latest on the search for ryan jenkins tonight at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. eastern right here on hln "news and views." former nfl star plaxico burress will spend the next five years behind bars. this morning he pleaded guilty to a weapons charge and agreed to a two-year prison term. he'll be sentenced next month. now the former new york giants wide receiver accidentally shot himself at a new york nightclub last november with an unlicensed

gun. remember burress caught the winning touchdown in the giants' upset victory over the new england patriots in super bowl xlii, but back to his term, with good behavior apparently he could be released from prison after serving 20 months. we have this just in. we want to share with you as well. we've been telling you about next month's tribute to michael jackson in austria. it's something fans have been waiting for obviously. today we found out just how eager they are. the website that's selling passes to the event was swamped when a million people tried to access it. it actually crashed. half an hour before the sale was supposed to start. that at 11:00 eastern. only 11,000 passes will be offered on the site. the tribute will take place at a 17th century palace in vienna. investigators were back at the office of michael jackson's dermatologist meanwhile. you see reporters here swarming the lead investigator from the l.a. coroner's office. this was yesterday. they said more than a week ago

their investigation was finished. they searched dr. arnold klein's office on july 14th. his attorney says investigators were looking to corroborate their information and that klein was not questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to maintain his utter cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he has done so. he will continue to do so and i am confident as his counsel that at the end of the day he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that exists out there in the media. thank you very much. >> jackson visited klein's office three days before he died. klein denied giving him any dangerous drugs. the coroner's office has said it won't release its report on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigations. we've learned ailing senator ted kennedy has sent a poignant letter to massachusetts leaders asking them to change a law to allow them to quickly replace him in the senate.

now this comes amid growing concern about kennedy's battle with brain cancer, although aides say there is no change in his condition. kennedy wants the governor to be able to temporarily appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of a vacancy. a convicted terrorist who helped blow up pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, is a free man. that's him in the white there boarding a plane in glasgow, scotland, on his way home to libya a few horse ago. abdel al megrahi served eight years of a life prison and was the only person found guilty in the case. officials released him because he's dying from prostate cancer. the white house though says it deeply regrets scotland's decision. 270 people lost their lives in the 1988 bombing. majority of those killed were americans. many of the victims' families say they are outraged that he's been released. so we want your views on this as

well. what do you think of the scottish government's decision to release the lockerbie bomber from prison because he's terminally ill? give us a call at 1-877-tell-hln or e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. we're taking a text poll, too, so text your views. send it to hlntv and text views "a" if you think, yeah, he should be released so he can go home to die or views "b" if you think, no, he should not. he should have stayed in prison. polls have closed in afghanistan's presidential election seen as a crucial test for stability and democracy. taliban threats dampends voter turnout in some of the areas though, particularly in the south which is a taliban stronghold. despite tight security, afghan officials say 26 people were killed in attacks. incumbent president hamid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has distanced itself from karzai criticizing his ties with former warlords. karzai's main challenger is his former foreign minister,

abdullah abdullah. he's portrayed himself as a best chance for change. preliminary results are expected to be announced by saturday. and the national hurricane center has downgraded hurricane bill to 'category 3 storm now. this is still a really potent, dangerous storm though. chad myers is in the cnn weatherer? with more on bill's current track and what it could mean for people living along the eastern seaboard because everyone is wondering how close is this thing going to get? >> within a couple hundred miles of cape cod for sure. ever seen the show "deadliest catch?" >> i haven't. >> they are in alaska and doing this fishing show and they are trying to catch these king crabs and other crabs and they show the waves 30, 40 feet crashing over the bows of these ships, an amazing wave. the waves under here, the high seas forecast are now up to 56 feet, almost twice as high as you see on that show and they say some of the rogue waves could be 100 feet tall so even though obviously those waves settle down a little bit as they

make their way towards land, we are going to see crashing wave events all the way from the lee ward islands, u.s. virgin islands and the bbi and all the the north shores here of the dr right through puerto rico. you need to stay away from the ocean with this storm system, and this storm will run up the east coast as well, put those crashing waves right on shore into florida. i know you're going to want to try to go out there and surf in these waves, but they are absolutely dangerous. they are going to be so confused and messed up, not going to be surfable for the most part anyway, and when you get 140-mile-per-hour wind that's generating waves through bermuda and all the way through the atlantic basin, it is going to be a mess out there, and your question was how close does it get to the u.s.? we always tell you never to focus on the center of the storm, center of the line, so let's focus on the center of the line. it's out here 200 miles away, but -- but now, part of the very western edge of this cone of possibility brushing the u.s. east coast, cape cod, nantucket

all the way up even into the coast of maine and then the middle of this thing coming right on shore into nova scotia. atlantic canada could be in for a direct hit. christi. >> okay. so it's a hurricane 3 now, but you do anticipate it could build to a hurricane 4 again. >> that's correct, because the water is warmer here it's going to probably go up to a category 4 today. in fact, they are flying a plane through it right now. they just found 154-mile-per-hour winds, where do they flight, not at the surface but that translates back down to a category 4 again so i'm sure it will go back up quite quickly. >> my goodness. thanks so much sore keeping us abreast here. we appreciate it. the white house takes another step regarding health care reform. what vice president joe biden says the obama administration is doing to help make health records more efficient and safer.

well, vice president joe biden says the obama administration is giving more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical records. in an announcement this morning, he's in chicago right now, he said the money would come from the $787 billion stimulus plan. now the vice president says electronic records will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again and in the process deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering it as we're doing now in this exponential curve of medical health care costs that the public doesn't realize understandably that we provide about 50% of the health care already, some indirectly by the federal government, in medicare and medicaid and, i mean, you know, there's a gigantic

component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> now the money will become available on october 1st which is the beginning of the new federal fiscal year, of course, and president obama meanwhile taking his health care push to conservative leaning radio listeners today. he'll be talking to philadelphia radio host michael smekonish 30 minutes from now and the show will be broadcast from the white house. he's generally seen as a conservative but did support obama last year and is an abortion rights supporter. later in the afternoon president obama will hold a conference call and online address to help promote his health care plan as well. so you want to see more jobs created, new ones? one north carolina restaurant owner says, hey, send some stimulus money my way. he says he'd create 35 jobs within three months. he's alone but tell that to the bank. how do you get money flowing to small business owners? that's a big question. here's christine romans for us.

>> reporter: dinnertime in lumberton, north carolina. >> everything good? >> reporter: restaurant owner rob redfern. >> he did 1.2 million in 2005, not bad for a small town, small restaurant. >> reporter: he's got 35 employees, a crowded bar on weekends and a dependable banquet business. five years ago he turned a century-old mule stable into this. he's confident he's got the ingredients to open another restaurant here, 35 miles north on i-95 in fayetteville. >> i'll hire 50 people in three months if i get the money that i'm looking for. >> reporter: 150,000 to be exact. >> my issue is that stimulus money that everybody is talking about needs to flow through to small businesses like this one. i don't want a bailout. i just want, you know, to open the door. i'll walk through it myself. >> reporter: but so far this door is shut. we called bb & t bank, the area's biggest small business lender and asked them why. turns out redfern's credit score doesn't match his confidence. a spokeswoman for bb & t who

recently paid back its own $3 billion bailout said we would have turned him down based on his credit history. rodefern admits to bumps in the road that dinged his credit. this is the new world of lending. >> a return to the old-fashioned lending standards, you know. they are making loans with the expectation that all of them are going to be repaid. >> reporter: that means making fewer loans to only the best applicants, even small business owners like red already fern who have had no trouble borrowing money in the past are being turned away. >> we've sort of ended up in this chicken and egg situation about the banks don't want to make the loans because the small business sector as a whole has been having such trouble and small business owners can't get the financing they need to run their businesses normally to expand. >> reporter: number of new small business loans is less than half what it was before the recession but the stimulus has helped. the amount of money loaned through sba's programs has risen 50% since february. >> this is -- >> reporter: ever the entrepreneur, redfern doesn't have the loan, but he still has

the vision. >> you look at this parking lot and you see cars. >> i see it full. >> and you see a successful restaurant. >> we wish him the best, and how to thrive in a tough economy, obviously people are doing it. we're hoping these stories help your creative juices flowing so for more of our series watch our sister network cnn tonight at 8:00 eastern. this is something no one wants to see when they are driving down the road at night. look at this. a car coming straight at you. this isn't your typical dash cam video either. what makes this clip really a cut above the rest.

here's my issue. a sick twist in the vicious murder of 8-year-old robert manuel. his mom and her ex-con boyfriend

daniel ehrlich are charged with killing this adorable boy. perhaps the most hideous part of this nightmare, this child's death was 100% preventable. robert should never have been in his mother's care. she was on probation for cracking the skull of her other young son. she reportedly can't read or write but certainly child protective services can, and they should have taken one quick read of her history and her by friend's rap sheet and never left poor robert under the care of this couple. shame on you, child services! where were you when poor robert manuel was being beaten to death? i'm jane velez mitchell, and that's my issue. >> tonight on "issues" a story we've been following for you. two hours of unseen foetth footage into the life of octomom nadya suleman aired yesterday. why did she do this revealing documentary? did she exploit her children in the process? watch "issues with jane vele zoo mitchell" right here tonight on hln at 7:00 p.m.

a state-of-the-art dash cam recorded a head-on collision. imagine seeing this yourself if you're behind the wheel. the $7,000 device works like your dvr. the car, look at this, swerves into an officer's lane. the camera starts recording on impact, and it's programmed to save the 30 seconds leading up to to it on a hard drive. thankfully no one was seriously hurt, believe it or not, but floyd county, indiana sheriff's department says they used seized drug money to buy those cameras. well, the other grandma of bristol palin's baby will be going to prison on drug charges. sherry johnston, levi's mom whom you see here on "larry king live" pleaded guilty yesterday to possession of oxycontin with intent to deliver, and she will likely get about three years behind bars. prosecutors agreed to the shortened sentence since she was using oxycontin legally until her insurance stopped paying for it. levi and sarah palin's daughter called off their wedding after their son tripp was born. male or female?

that's the question being asked of a south african track champion. look at this. the same day the south african teenager won a gold medal at the world south african teenager sh was undergoing a gender test. 18-year-old dominated the 800 meters here. i mean, it wasn't even close. the associated press reports spectacular times, muscular built and deep voice triggered suspicions about her gender. the test takes several weeks and involve a gynecologist, end dochristianologist and internal medicine and gender specialists. her father says he has no doubt his daughter is a woman. a surprise from the weekly jobless report came out today. first-time claims rose more than expected. they expected 550,000 new claims. it is time to face the facts

about facebook. great way, obviously too, keep up with friends and family, but it also opens you up to appar t apparently some really annoying people. one of our cnn.com workers has been pegged to a tee. see if you agree with this. they include the ones that post everything, you know, they're doing the self-promoters who keep pushing their blogs and opinions. the friend-padder who adds friends just for the sake of having more names on the list and then the town crier. other facebookers apparently that we love to hate the tmi fanatic who shares every detail and those who use bad grammar and spelling to look cool and the ones that fish for sympathy and the ones who lurk in the shadows of facebook who pop up every once in a while to let you know they're watching your page. head over to cnn.com/technology.

if you like wet kisses, just wait till you see what a pill bull did to an anchor on live television. got to love that live stuff. ñ

the man convicted of bombing pan am 103 is now free. why did a judge decide to let him go on compassionate grounds? a one-time super bowl champ agrees to jailtime. found out how long plaxico burrises will be behind bars for shooting himself. a reality tv show contest. wanted for questioning in his ex-wife's grisly death may no longer be in the u.s. the clues that show he may be in canada. hi, everybody. welcome, i'm chuck roberts. a convicted terrorist who helped blow up pan am flight 113 over lockerbie, scotland, has boarded a flight.

al megrahi served eight years of a life sentence. scottish officials released him because he's dying of prostate cancer. 270 people lost their lives in the christmas week 1988 bombing. the majority of those killed were americans. many of the victims' families say they're outraged that al megrahi has been released. >> it is absolutely sickening when you say compassion y feel ill, i feel physically ill. if that is the most misplaced compassion, i can imagine. i mean, we could weep for adolf hitler there and maybe mousselimussolini and we sld feel story for these people, i guess. >> some of the victims believe megrahi was a scapegoat and it's not clear who carried out the bombing of pan am 103. >> i want to see the clergy of the justice which is justice for the relatives of the victims and

also justs for people generally because until we know the full answer to lockerbie, we should be left in doubt. >> we've been asking your views on all this today. what do you think of the scottish government's decision to release the lockerbie's bomber from prison because he's 877-835-5456. look for the your views icon or text your view, send it to hlntv text views "a" if you think he should be released so he can go home and die or views "b" if you think, no, no way he should be released. former nfl star plaxico burris will spend the next few years behind bars as of this morning he pleaded guilty to a weapon's charge and agreed to a two-year prison term. he will be sentenced next month. the wide receiver accidentally shot himself last november with an unlicensed gun. with good behavior, he could be

released from prison after serving 20 months. burrises caught the winning touchdown in super bowl xlii. vice president joe biden says the obama administration is giving more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical records. in an announcement this morning, biden said the money will come from the $787 billion stimulus plan. the vice president says electronic record keeping will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again and, in the process, deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering in it than we're doing now in this expudential curve of medical costs that the public doesn't realize, understandably, that we provide about 50% of the health care, some indirectly by the federal government, the medicare, the medicaid, i mean, there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> the money will be available

on october 1st. president obama is taking his health care initiative to conservative leaning radio listeners today. right now he is talking to philadelphia radio host michael, that show is being broadcast from the white house. he is generally seen as a conservative, although, he did support obama last year and is an abortion rights supporter. later today, the president will hold a conference call and online address to promote his health care plan. congress is still on vacation, but some lawmakers are trying to get a little work done. the senate finance committee is holding a conference call today, the topic, health care reform. chairman committee max baucus says the panel is on track to reach a bipartisan agreement. senator chuck grassley isn't so sure. he says he doesn't see the kind of broad-based support this bill will need. ailing senator ted kennedy has sent a poignant letter to massachusetts leaders asking them to change the law to allow them to quickly replace him in the senate.

comes amid growing concern about kennedy's battle with brain cancer although there is no change in his condition. kennedy wants the governor to temporarily appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of a vacancy. a south african track star blew away the competition in a women's race and now authorities want to know if she is, in fact, a woman.

hurricane bill still out in the atlantic and it has weakened slightly, but forecasters say it's still sending high swell throughout the western atlantic. bermuda posted a hurricane watch this morning. the storm center is expected to move between the island territory on saturday. right now bill is a category 3 hurricane with winds up to 120 miles per. forecasters say it could strengthen to a cat 4, again, tomorrow. polls are closed in

afghanistan's presidential election seen as a crucial test for stability and democracy. taliban threats dampened voter turnout in the south, a taliban stronghold. security was tight, but, still, scattered reports of violence. incumbent president harmid karzai is running for a second term. criticizing his ties with former warlords. his main challenger, his own foreign minister has portrayed himself as the best chance for change. preliminary results should be announced by saturday. iran is giving u.n. inspectors access to some of its nuclear facilities. inspectors were allowed to visit a completed nuclear reactor last week after a year-long ban. not only that, but extended more monitoring rights at a site. the diplomatic sources demanded anonymity because, as you can imagine, this information is highly sensitive. a reality tv contestant wanted for questioning in the death of his bikini model

ex-wife may be in his native canada. that's what police in washington state and california are saying about ryan alexanderer je eer j who is canadian. her nude body was found stuffed in a suitcase in an orange county, california, trash bin over the weekend. preliminary coronary report indicates fiore was strangled. >> our fear is that he might be possibly en route to canada. we were able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins was a contestant on the vh-1 program "megan wants a millionaire." a man matching his description took a boat to washington state's port roberts peninsula and then just walked across the

bordner to british columbia. don't miss nancy grace for breaking news on this shocking case. the latest on the search for brian jenkins. a texas police officer suspected of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend let her go and killed himself after a standoff with police. police found julio reyes and the woman in a vacant house. he shot at police and dragged her upstairs. she's also a police officer. police say he let her go and then killed himself. >> it's emotional roller coaster and we are happy on one side and unfortunately, it's a bad day on the other side. >> officer rachel hillsman wasn't hurt in the standoff. she and the suspected kidnapper had a child together but broken off their relationship earlier this year. investigators are back at the office of michael jackson's dermatologist yesterday. you could see reporters swarming the lead investigators from the l.a. coroner's office. they said more than a week ago that their investigation was completed.

they searched dr. arnold klein's office july 14th. investigators were looking to corroborate their information and that klein wasn't questioned. >> dr. arnold klein was to maintain his other cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he had done so, he will continue to do so and i am confident as his council that at the end of the day, he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that is just out there. thank you very much. >> jackson visited klein's office three days before he died. klein had denied giving him any dangerous drugs and the coroner's office said it won't release his final reports including the toxicology results on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigation. we're finding out just how eager fans are for next month's tribute to michael jackson. the website selling passes to the event was swamped when 1

million people tried to access it. it crashed a half hour before the sale was besupposed to begin. only 85,000 passes will be offered on the site. this tribute will take place at a 17th century palace in vienna. male or female, that's the question being asked of a south african track champion. the same day this teenager won a medal, it was revealed she was undergoing a gender test. 18-year-old semenya dominated the 800-meter. her spectacular times, muscular built and deep voice triggered suspensions about her gender. the other grandma of bristol palin's baby will be going to prison on drug charges. levi's mom pleaded guilty to possession of oxycontin with intent to deliver. she will likely get three years behind bars.

prosecutors agreed to the shortened sentence and she was using oxycontin legally until her insurance stopped paying for it. levi and sarah palin's daughter called off their wedding after their son, tripp, was born. recorded a head-on collision. the $7,000 device works like your dvr at home. the car swerves into the officer's lane and the camera starts recording on impact and programmed to save the 30 seconds saving up to it on the hard drive. officials say they used seized drug money to buy the cameras. if cash for clunkers about to come to a screeching halt? it helped the car business boom, why are dozens of dealers now putting the breaks on participating.

the cia hired contractors to be part of a top-level program of al qaeda in 2004. the contracts with blackwater

usa were unsuccessful and canceled several years ago. u.s. intelligence officials say the program never resulted in the capture or killing of any terrorists. blackwater came under heavy criticism after a 2007 shooting in baghdad that left 17 iraqi civilians dead. the cash for clunkers program seems to be a victim of its own success and it may be running out of time again. will there be another reprieve? the "washington post" says dozens of programs are being pulled out of the program. they are not getting paid by the government for the money they fronted to consumers. >> 4,000 vehicle transactions that happened and only 2% of them have been approved for reimbursement. that is a very poor track record at this point. >> they're not going to ask for more money at the white house for this program. the $3 billion on the table is all that is left and when that runs out, not likely that any more money coming behind it. these dealers are opting out, might not be opting out of all that much more of the cash for clunkers program at this point. >> today general motors

announced a cash advance to workers waiting for a reimbursement. the dealers will get paid eventually, although the obama administration could announce an end date for the program by tomorrow. economists got a surprise when the weekly jobless report came out today. for the first time claims rose more than expected to 576,000 and experts anticipated it would only be about 550,000 new claims. the overall jobless numbers are bad, but the numbers for troops returning from iraq and afghanistan are even worse. chris lawrence has more on the job market for veterans. >> reporter: every month at ft. hood nearly 1,000 soldiers trade their rifles for resumes. they're leading the army with the unemployment for recent veterans is nearly 10%. vets who served since 2001, 160,000 of them don't have jobs. >> how do you feel right now about getting out? >> scared.

that's the only word i could use for it. frightening transition. >> reporter: this sergeant is about to become a civilian. >> it worries me. i stay up a lot, i'm stressed over this. >> reporter: this is a woman who deployed to iraq three times, took small arms fire and had her convoy blown up more than once. she's a vehicle mechanic who wants an office job and more time to start a family, but it's a challenge. >> the words that we use aren't the words of the civilian world and to sound myself in a way that you really don't have to sell yourself in the military. >> reporter: in the corporate world, you have to make sure your boss knows what a good job you did. in the military, it's all about team, not the individual. >> it's very hard to get a soldier to turn around and right down their accomplishments because it sounds like bragging. >> reporter: linda crisp runs ft. hood's transition office which tracks down open jobs and

offers career counseling. but its biggest challenge is making military skills relevant on a resume. >> we teach the soldier to market themselves. >> reporter: including appearance. tina enlisted when she was 19 and like a lot of young vets, she's worn a uniform all of her adult life. you've got to think about business suits, your hair, all that. >> all that. >> reporter: military discipline in the experience of actual war make up for what they may lack in wardrobe. >> so, hopefully with all this work i'm putting into it, it works out in the end. >> reporter: bottom line, they fought in iraq, in afghanistan, but in this economy, the thing that scares some of them the most is becoming a civilian. chris lawrence, cnn, ft. hood, texas. one more story on the economy. the conference board said its report on the leading indicators and activity rose again last month. it was up just over 0.5%. less than expected, but the

report still indicates the recession has bottomed out. people in india are getting the keys to the nano, the cheapest car in the world. what does it mean for the u.s. auto industry? clark howard breaks down how the new car might help your wallet in the future. >> the nano car. the world's cheapest automobile is now in people's driveways in india. this car that you can buy in india for $2,500, that's right, a full four-door car, seats four people, a fifth you don't. is now available and selling like crazy. can and you may wonder, why am i telling you about a car that is only available in india. big news. this car just passed the european union safety and crash test. which are somewhat similar to ours and europeans are already buzzing that they're going to be able to buy a car that even with

the modifications for europe, will end up being somewhere around $3,500. what about us? well, i want you to know for us, this is a clear trend that we are going to see in the next few years cars cheaper than you ever imagined. about the price of a motorcycle. i'm clark howard. for more ways to save, go to cnn.com/clarkhoward. and you get great consumer advice from clark weekends right here. saturdays and sundays clark howard at noon and 4:00 eastern right here on hln. americans are living longer than ever and a new cdc report says life expectancy in the u.s. has reached an all-time high. a baby born in 2007 is expected to live that long. the report says death rates are down in almost all the leading causes of death like cancer and heart disease. still, the u.s. lagged behind 30 other countries in expected life spans. japan was the longest at 83. a man convicted for his role

in the bombing of pan am 103 over lockerbie, scotland, has been set free from scotland. 8

plaxico burris will spend the next few years behind bars as he pleaded guilty today to a two-year prison term. he will be sentenced next month. the wide receiver accidentally shot himself at a new york nightclub in november last year with an unlicensed gun. with good behavior he could be out after 20 months. bu burress' celebrity worked against him. >> if he was not a high-profile individual it would have never been a case. if he was john doe he would walk out of the hospital. if he was not a law-abiding citizen, he could have thrown that gun away.

>> burress caught the winning touchdown in super bowl xlii. a convicted terrorist who helped blow up pan am flight 103 over scotland is a free man. you see him in white, or you're about to. right there. boarding a plane today in glasgow, scotland, en route home to libya to die. al megrahi served eight years of a life sentence. he was the only person found guilty in the case. scottish officials said they released him because he's dying of prostate cancer and the white house deeply regrets scotland's decision. it 70 people perished in the bombing and the majority of those killed were americans. many of the victims' families are outraged that al megrahi has been released. >> it is absolutely sickening when you say compassion, i feel ill. i feel physically ill. if that is the most misplaced compassion, i can imagine. we could weep, couldn't we, for poor old adolf hitler and maybe

mussolini and we should feel sorry for these people, i guess. >> they believe he was a scapegoat and that it's not really clear who carried out the actual bombing. >> i want to see the closure of the justice, which is justice for the relatives of the victims and, also, justs for people generally because until we know the full answer to lockerbie, we shall be left in doubt. >> what are your thoughts on this? it has been over 20 years. you think the scottish government was right to release the convicted bomber early because he's about to die? call us toll free, 877-835-5456. there's the e-mail address. look for the your views icon or join the text poll. text views "a" if you think, yes, he should be released so he should go home to die or views "b" if you think, no way he should be released early. vice president joe biden said the obama administration is

getting more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical record keeping. in an announcement this morning biden said the money would come from the $780 billion stimulus plan. it will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again and in the process deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering in it as we're doing now in this expodential curve of american health care costs that we provide 50% of the health care already, some already indirectly by the federal government. the medicare, the medicaid and there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> the money becomes available the first of october at the outset of the new federal fiscal year. president obama took his health care push to conservative leaning radio listeners today on a broadcast from the white house. he talked to philadelphia radio

host. he is generally seen as conservative, though he supported obama last year and is an abortion rights supporter. he asked about the white house insisting is strong, despite comments made this weekend. >> now, what we have said is let's make a public option one choice of many choices that are available to people who are joining the exchange. i see nothing wrong as having that option for one option of the federal employees, as well. one thing i have to make absolutely clear, nobody would be obligated to choose the public option. if you went on that website and you said ednuor blue cross/blue shield are offering a good deal and i would rather choose that plan than the public plan, you'd be perfectly free to do so. >> today the president holds a conference call in an online address to promote his health care plan. congress, of course, still

on recess, but some lawmakers are trying to get a little work done. the senate finance committee is holding a conference call today. the topic, health care reform. max baucus of montana said it is on track to reach an agreement. chuck grassley isn't so sure. he doesn't see the kind of broad-based support that that bill will need. ailing senator ted kennedy has sent a leader to ask quickly to allow them to change a law to quickly replace him in the senate. this comes amid growing concern with kennedy's batual brain cancer. ted kennedy wants the governor, duval patrick, to appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of a vacancy. the national hurricane center has downgraded hurricane bill to a category 3 storm. it is still quite a potent storm. it is still very dangerous. chad myers is in the cnn weather center with more on bill's current track and what it could mean to people living along the

eastern seaboard, specifically new england, right? >> new england probably some wind and waves. i'm telling you all the way to new england, the waves this weekend are going to be dangerous. they're going to be deadly, chuck. literally. the waves underneath this hurricane right now by the high seas forecast 56 feet. i can't imagine how big of a ship you have to be in there for a 56-foot wave not really to affect you. clearly, the shipping interests are avoiding this big storm here. and the waves are now coming in and crashing on to the north shore of puerto rico, all the way through the spanish and u.s. virgin islands and eventually the dr through the turks and cakose and then up as this storm continues to move its way up towards the north and towards the northeast. it's just in the forecast that this could skim parts of cape cod, nan tucket and then probably make some type of direct hit somewhere in atlantic canada back up towards nova scotia or the like.

it is forecast to be a 3, just for a while later today back at a 4 and back to a 3. doesn't matter, 1 125-mile-per-hour storm is still a very significant storm whether you call it a 3 or a 4. chuck, i want to draw your attention to cnn.com/hurricane. you can go in there and do everything that i just did right online. cnn.com/hurricane. you can find the plot, see where the models are going and find the satellite and see what it is doing and play the satellite. all in all, i don't even have to have my graphics in here. i could just use dotcom/hurricane. >> that's a great plug. the probability, the tracks are all kind of converging, right? they're pretty darn sure where this thing is going now, right? >> what happens eventually when you get to this point is that the tracks and especially the forecast models begin to get the width of the error gets smaller and smaller because you're closer and closer to land. not one model that takes it onland in new england.

that does not mean that you will not see 60 or o70-knot winds here and also just huge waves along the shore of cape cod. amazing waves large enough to completely go over the cape cod area and that would, obviously, do some washing out problems, as well. could see the same kind of problems through cape hatteras. that is a low-lying, you get 15-foot waves over the top of that, you could lose some of the island. >> chad, i appreciate it, thank you. the man accused of attacking mayor tom barrett has been charged. 20-year-old anthony peters was charged today with felony counts of first degree reckless injury and theft along with two misdemeanors in a criminal complaint peters argued he got into an argument with his 1-year-old granddaughter's mother on saturday. the mayor's recovering from a broken hand, missing teeth and, as you can see, cuts to the face. a south african track star

blew away the competition in the women's race and now authorities want to know, if, in fact, she is a woman o.

polls have closed in afghanistan's presidential election seen as a crucial test for stability and democracy. taliban threats dampen voter turnout in some areas, especially in the taliban stronghold in the south. security was tight, but there have been scattered reports of violence. incumbent president harmid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has distanced itself from karzai. his main challenger, his foreign minister, has portrayed himself as the best chance for change.

preliminary results are expected no later than saturday. the cia apparently hired krabl contractors to be part of a secret program to kill top members of al qaeda in 2004. the contracts with blackwater usa were all unsuccessful and canceled several years ago. the program never resulted in the capture or killing of any terrorists. blackwater came under heavy criticism after a 2007 shooting in baghdad that left 17 iraqi civilians dead. social networking site facebook is a great tool for keeping up with family and friends but a lot not so great about it. in fact, you can find yourself really sorry for friending some people. for more, let's turn to melissa long for this and other top stories. melissa, hello. >> how do unfriend them because that can be an issue in and of itself. are you on facebook, chuck? >> i haven't found five people who care what i'm up to yet. >> i bet there are 5,000.

speaking of numbers, that's actually one of the categories for annoying facebookers or facebook users. people that just seem to have too many darn friends. an average number about 120 friends that somebody might have, but there are some people that just seems to be, oh o, just too obsessed with making friends. those are the friend patters. that's one of the categories of 12 annoying types of facebookers. also, people that are known for posting too much information about the mundane updates, things that you really don't need to know, good morning y woke up or i had cereal for breakfast. who cares? the self-promoters, somebody who is linking to a poem he or she wrote and he and she competed a 5k race. always talking about themselves. that is just three of the categories that are listed on one of the more popular stories on our website today. again, the 12 categories of annoying facebookers and this was put together by our technology editor at cnn.com. >> what kind of facebooker are you? >> i don't fall into any of the

categories. however, i have one friend that i would like to unfriend that falls into five of them simultaneously. >> that's more than a trifecta. >> i know. >> another story involves the female track star talk about that. >> she is a female track star who is blowing away the competition, but some are curious whether she should be running with the boys not because she's so good but they're wondering if she is a he. she is 18 years of age, just blew past the competition in a recent race for the women's world 800 meter title and now they're wondering, the sports governing body. they want to know whether or not she is actually a he. her father says, absolutely not. her coach says absolutely not. this athlete is a girl. what about the athlete? well, according to her coach, she's not bothered by the questions about gender and is simply focusing on improving her time. the organization i mentioned earlier, the iaaf and the

spokesperson there says the gender verification test is an extremely complex procedure and the tests not in the near future. a lot of people questioning whether or not this is, in fact, a she or a he because of the stellar athletic skills when racing. >> a lot of people interested in that. police want to talk to a reality tv contestant over the death of his bikini model ex-wife in california. he may no longer be in the state. he may no longer be in the u.s. the clues that he may have slipped into canada.

a reality tv contestant wanted for questioning in the death of his bikini model ex-wife is what police in california are saying about ryan alexander jenkins who is a canadian. they are not calling him a suspect, they want to question him in the death of jasmine fiore. ler body was found in the trash bin in orange county, california. there is the swimsuit model. a report indicates that fiore was strangled. >> our fear is that he might

possibly be en route to canada. we were able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported that fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins was a contestant on the vh-1 show "megan wants a millionaire." a man matching his description took a boat to point roberts peninsula in washington state, which a peninsula that is shared with british columbia and then merely walked across the border into canada. watch nancy grace for the latest on breaking news in the case. don't miss nancy tonight at 8:00 and 10:00 eastern. a texas police officer suspected of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend let her go and killed himself after a standoff with police. police found julio trey reyes and a woman in a vacant house.

he shot at police and dragged her upstairs. she is also a police officer and police say he let her go and then killed himself. >> it's emotional roler coaster and we are happy on one side and, unfortunately, it's a bad day on the other side. >> officer rachel hillsman was not hurt in the standoff. she and the suspected kidnapper had a child together, but had broken off the relationship earlier this year. i'm jane velez-mitchal and here is my issue. a sick twist in the murder of robert manwill. his mom and her ex-con boyfriend are charged with killing this adorable boy, perhaps the most hideous part of this nightmare, this child's death was 100% preventable. robert should never have been in his mother's care. she was on probation for cracking the skull of her other young son. she reportedly can't read or write, but certainly child

protective services can and they should have taken one quick read of her history and her boyfriend's rap sheet and never left poor robert under the coup. shame on you, child services. where were you when poor robert manwill was being beaten to death? i'm jane velez-mitchell, and that's my issue. >> tonight on "issues" two ours of unseen footage into the life of octo mom aired yesterday. why did she do this revealing documentary? don't miss "issues" tonight and every weekend at 7:00. investigators were back in the office of michael jackson's dermatologist yesterday. you can see reporters swarming the lead investigator. they said more than a week ago their investigation was finished. they searched dr. arnold klein's office on the 14th. they were looking to corroborate their information and klein wasn't questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to maintain his utter cooperation

with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he has done so. he will continue to do so, and i am confident as his counsel that at the end of the day he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that exists out there in the media. thank you very much. >> jackson visited klein's office three days before he died. klein denied giving him any dangerous drugs. the coroner's office won't release its report on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigation. economists got a surprise when the weekly jobless report came out today. first time claims rose more than expected. 576,000 of them. experts anticipated about 550,000 new climb claims. the conference board said its report on leading indicators rose again last month, up just over a half percent, less than expected, but the board says the report still indicates the recession has bottomed out.

so is cash for clunkers about to come to a screeching halt? will there be another retrieve? it's helped the car business. why are dozen of dealers now putting the brakes on participating?

the man convicted of bombing pan am flight 103 killing 270 people is a free man. why did the judge decide to let him go on compassionate grounds? and a reality tv show contestant wanted for questioning in his ex-wife's grisly death may no longer be in the u.s. clues that show he may now be in canada. plus, just because you have one dress doesn't mean to have to be a fashion disaster. how to work the little black dress for all its worth. 30 days here, folks. that will save you some money, right? i'm christi paul. thank you for being with us. happy friday to you as we like to say. sit back and relax. we'll get you informed so you can take a little time to yourself here. president obama took his health care push to

conservative-leaning radio listeners today in a proft frbr from the white house. he talked to michael smerconish. he's generally seen as a conservative but he supported obama last year and is an abortion rights supporter as well. he asked about the white house support for the public option insisting is strong despite comments made over the weekend. >> what we have said is let's make a public option one choice of many choices that are available to people who are joining the exchange, and i see nothing wrong with potentially having that public option as one option for federal employees as well, but the important thing that i think i have to make absolutely clear, nobody would be obligated to choose the public option. if you went on that website and you said, you know what, aetna, or blue cross/blue shield are offering a good deal and i would rather choos that plan than the public plan, you would be

perfectly free to do so. >> late they are afternoon president obama will hold a conference call and online address to promote his health care plan. fireworks are possible in florida because of health care reform. the florida'-- alliance for retired americans is holding their forum today. its members support a health care overhaul but outside the center, protesters are showing a show of force. several democratic members of congress were invited. only two agreed to attend. the president of the organization says he expects protesters will try to, quote, create chaos and i don't think that serves anyone well. we have learned a man on this plane forced it to turn to the oakland, california, airport shortly after takeoff. apparently he didn't have a weapon. he just took all his clothes off. this is southwest airlines plane obviously. it was flying to st. louis. we've only got a few details,

but we do know the man's been taken into custody. he is being given a medical examination, but, again, i don't know how long it will be before that plane takes off at this point. an american woman who lost her daughter in the bombing of pan am flight 103 says scotland's decision to release the convicted bomber is, quote, appalling, disgusting, and so sickening, unquote. abdel ba set al megrahi is on his way home to libya. that's him in the white there. he served eight years of a life sentence and was the only person found guilty in the case. scottish officials say they released him because he's dieing from prostate cancer. the white house says it deeply regrets scotland's decision. 270 people lost their lives in the 1988 bombing and the majority of those killed were americans. so we want to know what you think about this release. their decision to let him go from prison because he's terminally ill. call us at 1-877-tell-hln.

or e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. we're taking a text poll, too. send your view to hlntv. text views "a" if you think, yes, he should be released so he can go home to die. or views "b" if you think, no, he should stay in prison. vice president joe biden says the obama administration's giving more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical records. in an announcement this morning biden said the money would come from the $787 billion stimulus plan. the vice president says electronic records will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again and in the process deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering it as we're doing now in this exponential curve of

health care costs. we provide 50% of the cost already. there's a gigantic component for financial colonel ven si. >> i don't know if you have heard this but ailing senator ted kennedy has sent a poignant letter to massachusetts leaders asking them to change a law to a allow them to quickly replace him in the senate. this comes amid growing concern about kennedy's battle with brain cancer. aides say there is no change in his condition. kennedy wants the governor to temporarily appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of vacancy. you know we're very closely watching hurricane bill. it's still well out to sea. it has weakened slightly, but forecasters say it's sending high swells throughout the western atlantic. bermuda posted a hurricane watch center is expected

to move between the island now. it's a category 3 hurricane with winds up to 120 miles an hour. it had been a 4 at one point. photographers say it could strengthen back into a 4 though as early as later today or tomorrow. a reality tv contestant wanted for questioning in the death of his bikini model ex-wife may be in canada now. that's what police in washington state and california are saying about ryan alexander jenkins who's canadian. you see him on the right-hand side of the screen. they want to question him in the death of 28-year-old jasmine e fiore. her nude body was found stuffed in a trash bin over the weekend. >> our fear is he might possibly be en route to canada. we were able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the

los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported miss fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins was a contestant on the hv1 tv show "megan wants a millionaire." police say they received a report that a man matching his description took a boat to washington state's point robert's peninsula and walked across the border to british columbia. watch nancy grace for breaking news in this shocking case. the latest this the search for ryan jenkins. that's tonight at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. eastern right here on hln "news and views." polls have closed in afghanistan's presidential election. seen as a crucial test here for stability and democracy. taliban threats dampened voter turnout in some areas, particularly in the south which is a taliban stronghold. despite tight security, afghan officials say 26 people were

killed in attacks. incumbent president hamid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has distanced itself from karzai criticizing his ties with former warlords. his main challenger is his former foreign minister abdullah abdullah. he's portrayed himself as the best chance for change. preliminary results are expected on saturday. here is the question. is she or isn't she a she? how a track star's amazing achievements raised suspicions about her gender.

japan is struggling to meet its greenhouse gas reduction target set as part of the kyoto treaty. morgan neil tells us what the country is doing to try to get its greenhouse gas emissions

under control. >> reporter: when japan signed onto the kyoto protocols in 1997 it was with the sense of confidence. the country was seen as an environmental leader. few doubted it could meet its target, a 6% cut from greenhouse gas emissions below 1990 levels by 2012. but emissions haven't fallen, they've risen. according to government figures, by 9% since 1990. though industrial emissions have fallen, those from transportation, commerce, and people's homes have risen. in an effort to change that, japan's ministry of the environment is leading a campaign it calls team minus 6%. the main message, conserve electricity. one of the ways they're doing that, trains like this one taking part in the campaign. they've got signs up throughout the train saying in order to help out with global warming, we're raising the temperature on the train by 1 degree.

despite the sometimes oppressive summer heat, the minute vi says people have responded well. more than 3 million people are registered as part of the team minus ix campaign. but critics say the government's campaign is missing the point. 65 to 70% of the co2 emissions in japan come from power stations and big factories, she says. this is not something that can be dealt with by the team minus 6% campaign. we need a proper strategy. with political parties, industry sectors, and environmental groups all backing different positions, it's clear the debate over how to deal with japan's greenhouse gas emissions won't end with kyoto's 2012 deadline. morgan neil, cnn, tokyo. things may seem a little cleaner and greener in mexico city a day after a law banning most plastic bags went into

effect. supermarkets and other stores aren't allowed to use plastic bags unless they're biodegradable. store enothers who break the law could go to jail. an environmental agency says plastic bags are the most common source of litter after cigarette butts. san francisco outlawed them two years ago. cash for clunkers could be winding down. dealers are quitting the program because they say uncle sam is too clowe. f for more on this we want to turn to poppy harlow. we all wondered how long the second infiltration of this would be. >> you're exactly right. a lot of folks probably upset as they hear that the program may be ending soon. others didn't like it to start out with, but the news is the government could announce as soon as today how and when it will wind down that cash for clunkers program. this comes as hundreds of auto dealers right here in the new

york area just flat out quit the program saying it's taking too long for them to get reimbursed by the government and saying they just can't afford to wait. >> they've been so frustrated with the administration of the program that they can't continue to exist with it. i mean, this has been a program that's actually probably the best incentive stimulus funds the federal government can come up with. the problem is in the details. and the details of this program is an administration program that's just too hard to sort of control. there are dealers out hundreds of thousands of dollars, millions of dollars, waiting for some indication of whether they're going to be paid for the cars that they've already sold. >> transportation secretary ray lahood is trying to reassure dealers. he says they will get the money. he also says that all the dealers will be reimbursed. christi? >> let's talk about the consumer because if there are still people out there who want to take advantage of the program, i have to think are they thinking i don't know if i should even

attempt. >> it could be harder if we see more and more dealers pull out. right now the program is still going on so you can at least try. the government trying to set out these reassurances, but the national association of auto dealers says there's a growing risk that dealers they think may not be reimbursed by the government. they're worried the program could run out of money and even at participating dealerships some people are being asked to sign a form that says they'll pay back the voucher money if the dealer doesn't get reimbursed. another thing we're hearing a bit on is that you make the deal possibly but the dealer doesn't let you take home the new deal until they get reimbursed. that's actually not allowed f that happens you should notify the government immediately. but what we do know is automakers don't want to let this program go. it is very good for their sales. general motors just came out today and said it will provide cash advances to dealers who cover those vouchers. we'll see, we'll be watching if the other automakers do the same. there's a great explanation of this on our sight cnnmoney.com. >> that's where we will go to get it. thank you so much, poppy. >> you're welcome.

male or female? that's the question being asked of a south african track champion. the same day this south african teenager won a gold medal it was revealed she was undergoing a gender test. 18-year-old caster dominated the 800 meters. it wasn't even close. the associated press reports her spectacular times, muscular build, and deep voice triggered suspicions about her gender. now, the test takes several weeks apparently and it involved get this a gynecologist, endocrinologis endocrinologist, psychologist, internal medicine, and gender specialists and we'll let you know as soon as we find out. investigators track down a cop suspected of kidnapping another officer. we'll tell you what happened during the tense standoff.

ch former nfl star plaxico burress will spend the next few years behind bars.

this morning he pleaded guilty to a weapons charge and agreed to a two-year prison term. he will be sentenced formally next month but the former new york giants wide receiver accidentally shot himself in a new york nightclub last november with an unlicensed gun. with good behavior he could be released from prison after serving 20 months. >> this is a perfect example in many ways of how bad judgment sometimes has very terrible consequences, consequences far more severe than may be justified in my view under the circumstances. >> burres caught the winning touchdown in the giants' upset victory over the new england patriots in super bowl xlii. look at the reporters swarp -- swarming the lead investigators. they searched dr. arnold klein's office july 14th. his attorney says investigators were looking to corroborate

their information and that klein was not questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to maintain his utter cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he has done so. he will continue to do so, and i am confident as his counsel that at the end of the day he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that exists out there in the media. thank you very much. >> jackson visited klein's office three days before he died. klein has denied giving him any dangerous drugs, and the coroner's office has said it won't release its report on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigation. a texas police officer suspected of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend did let her go after a standoff with police. authorities found julio reyes and the woman in a vacant house. now, he shot at police, dragged her upstairs. she's also a police officer, by

the way. and authorities say he let her go and then killed himself. >> it's an emotional roller coaster, and we are happy on one side and, unfortunately, it's a bad day on another side. >> officer rachel hillsman was not hurt in the standoff. she and the suspected kidnapper had a child together but apparently had brecken off their relationship a bit earlier this year. americans are living longer than ever. a new cdc report says life expectancy is at an all-time high, nearly 78 years. which means a baby born in 2007 is expected to live that long. the report says death rates are down in almost all the leading causes of death such as cancer and heart disease, but still the u.s. lags behind 30 other countries in expected life span. japan has the longest life expectancy at 83. we've been asking for your views on one of our top stories today. a man convicted for his role in the bombing of pan am flight 103

over lockerbie, scotland, has been released from prison. the scottish government says it was a compassionate release. some of you have a very different opinion though. )$)$)$$

president obama took his health care push to conservative listening radio listeners today n a broadcast from the white house, you're seeing it there, the president talked to philadelphia radio host, that's michael smumme summer conish. president obama says he thinks the legislation will get passed. >> i'm confident we'll get it done. as far as negotiations with republicans, my attitude has always been let's see if we can get this done with some consensus. i would love to have more republicans engaged and involved in this process. i think early on a decision was

made by the republican leadership that said, look, let's not give them a victory. maybe we can have a replay of 1993-'94 when clinton came in. he failed on health care and we won in the midterm elections. >> this afternoon president obama is holding a conference call and online address to promote his health care plan as well. fireworks are possible in florida because of health care reform. the florida alliance for retired americans or flara is holding their retired forum. its members on the whole support a health care overhaul. outside the center protesters are planning a show of force. several democratic members of congress were invited but only two agreed to attend. the president of the organization says he expects protesters will try to create chaos and i don't think that serves anyone well. an american woman who lost hear daughter in the bombing of pan am flight 103 says sco

scotland's decision is sickening. the bomber served eight years of a life sentence. that's him in the white. this is file footage. he was the only person found guilty in the case. scottish officials say they released him because he's dieing from prostate cancer. the white house says it deep le regrets scotland's decision. so what do you think of the scottish government's decision to release him from prison because he's terminally ill? call us at 1-877-tell-hln. e mail us at cnn.com/hln and be part of our text poll. text your view and send it to hlntv. text views a if you think he should be released so he can go home to die or views b if you think, no, he should stay in

prison. ailing senator ted kennedy has sent a poignant letter to massachusetts leaders asking them to change a law to allow them to quickly replace him in the senate. now, this comes amid growing concern about kennedy's battle with brain cancer although aides say there is no change in his condition. kennedy wants the governor to be able to temporarily appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of a vacancy. vice president joe biden says the obama administration is giving more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to a electronic medical records. in an announcement this morning biden said the money would come from the $787 billion stimulus plan, and he says electronic records will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again and in the process deal with preserving america's wealth rather than

squandering it as we're doing now in this exponential curve of mel health care cost that is the public doesn't realize understandably that we provide 50% of the health care already some indirectly by the federal government in medicare and medicaid. there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> the money will become available on october 1st, which is the beginning of the new federal fiscal year. police across canada are looking for a former reality tv contestant who you see on the right wanted for questioning in the death of his bikini model ex-wife. that's what police in washington state and california are saying about ryan alexander jenkins. they aren't formally called him a suspect. jas smine fiore's nude body was found stuffed in a trash can.

preliminary reports indicate she was strangled. >> our fear is he might possibly be en route to canada. when able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported miss fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins, as you see him here, was a contestant on the tv show "megan wants a millionaire." police say they received a report that a man matching his description slipped back into canada by walking across a remote borderland in washington state. nancy grace is watching this, all the breaking news coming out of it. the latest for the search for ryan jenkins comes to you at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. eastern on nancy grace on hln "news and views." i know a lot of you are watching hurricane bill right now. there it is still well out to sea. it has weakened slightly, too. forecasters say it's sending

high swells throughout the western atlantic. bermuda posted a hurricane watch this morning. the storm's center is expected to move between the island territory and the eastern u.s. saturday. right now bill is a category 3 hurricane with winds up to 10 miles an hour. forecasters say it could strengthen back into a category 4 either later today or tomorrow. well, polls have closed in afghanistan's presidential elections seen as a crucial test for stability and democracy. taliban threats dampened voter jurn to turnouts in some areas, particularly the south. despite tight security afghan officials say 26 people were killed in attacks. incumbent president hamid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has criticized his ties with former warlords. car sigh's main challenger is his former foreign minister abdullah abdullah. he's portrayed himself as the best chance for change. preliminary results are expected

to be announced on saturday. sure is a great way to keep up with friends and family, but facebook also opens you up to what some say are some really annoying people. find out if you're one of them.

facebook obviously a great tool for keeping up with family and friends. there's a lot that might not be so great about it to some people though. in fact, you can find yourself really sorry for friending some people apparently. i haven't had this problem and i'm grateful for that. actually i have had to kick one person off, but nicole lapin, you're not it. i love being friends with you.

so who are these people and what are their habits that are annoying to some people? >> first of all, i think you're doing a great job. i just saw your new fan page. i am a fan. >> thank you. >> i'm glad i made the cut, by the way, but we have an exclusive story to cnn.com. i think you will know people who fit these categories. if you're not in these categories yourselves, don't be shy, we're all there. we're all on facebook these days. there's 12 of the most annoying types of face bookers. there's one that's called the tmier. the too much informationer. like brad is heading to walgreen's to buy something for those pesky hemorrhoids. that goes way above and beyond any information you should be sharing with any friend. they have another one kald the paparazzo. you can take the quiz and find out which one you are. the paparazzo is someone who posts tons of pictures if you

went to an event or something like that over the weekseend an you see a photo you didn't know existed. and then, of course, we have the ever loved friend patter. you know, the average bafaceboo user has about 120 friends on 300 or 400. but then you get those folks who just friend request everybody and their mama and their grandma, and we know that's folks as the friend padders. those are just 3 of the 12 different types of facebook friends out there. >> it was so interesting to read now they've been titled because i think everybody that's been on facebook can relate to, oh, yeah, i know somebody like that. what kind of facebooker are you, nicole? >> i am a -- probably a nice

facebook friender. >> you are, you are. >> i try to be very courteous. >> friend nicole and you will find out she really is very friendly. >> i like a lot of your things. that's for sure. i click that button. >> what else are people clicking on, speaking of click buttons. captured the world's attention. it's been an 18-year-old young woman who they are now questioning whether she is actually a she. that is 18-year-old castor semenya who has won the woman's 800 meter title in berlin in a record time for that matter. now the international amateur athletics federation thinks that semenya is a man. what's interesting about the results that they're trying to do is that they actually say gender verification is a complex and long procedure, so they

might not even know the results soon enough. i don't know, christi. i would think that a gender test could be done pretty quickly. >> i would, too. >> but that's just me. >> the pictures do make you wonder though. we'll just wait and find out who it is and we'll let everybody know. >> read about it on cnn.com. >> you got it. nicole, thank you. >> great to see you. >> you, too. do you want to see new jobs created? one north carolina restaurant owner says, hey, send me some stimulus money and i will create 35 jobs within months. he just needs a loan. how do you get money flowing to small business owners? >> reporter: dinnertime in lumberton, north carolina. >> everything is good. >> brent: restaurant owner rob redfern. >> we did $1.2 million. >> reporter: he's got 35 employees, a crowded bar on weekends, a dependable banquet business. five years ago he turned a century old mule stable into this.

he's confident he's got the ingredients to open another restaurant here, 35 miles north on i-95 in fayetteville. >> i'll hire 50 people in three months if i get the money i'm looking for. >> reporter: $150,000 to be exact. >> my issue is that stimulus money that everything is talking about needs to flow through to small businesses like this one. i don't want a bailout. i just want to open the door. i'll walk through it myself. >> reporter: so far that door is shut. we called bb&t bank, the area's biggest small business lender and asked them why. turns out redfern's credit score doesn't match his confidence. a spokeswoman for bb&t who recently paid back its own $3 billion bailout said we would have turned him down based on his credit history. redfern admits to bumps in the road that have dinged his credit. this is the new world of lending. >> lenders have returned to the old-fashioned lending standards, you know. they're making loans with the

expectation that all of them are going to be repaid. >> reporter: that means making fewer loans to only the best applicants, even small business owners like redfern, who have had no trouble borrowing money in the past are being turned away. >> we sort of ended up in this chicken and egg situation where the banks don't want to make the loans, but then small business owners can't get the financing they need to run their businesses normally to expand. >> reporter: the number of two small business loans is less than half what it was before the recession, but the stimulus has helped. the amount of money loaned through sba programs has risen 50% since february. ever the entrepreneur, redfern doesn't have the loan, but he still has the figures. you look at this parking lot and you see cars? >> i see it full. >> you see a successful restaurant. >> i see it full. >> best of luck to him. hopefully these stories are getting your creative juices flowing because people are doing this here. so for more of our series "money

and main street," watch cnn tonight at 8:00 eastern. back in a moment.

want to let you know we're hearing media reports out of libya say this man you see in white, abdel baset al megrahi has landed in libya. now, this video is from a few hours ago as he boarded a plane in scotland earlier today, but here is the thing. he was convicted for his role in the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, but was released from his life sentence of which he served eight years in prison because his doctors say he has only about three months left to live. he's got termal cancer. associated press now reporting thousands of people actually greeted him at the airport, but again it seems his plane has landed in libya. i'm jane velez-mitchell and

here is my issue. a sick twist in the vicious murder of 8-year-old robert manwill. his mom and her ex-con boyfriend are charged with killing this adorable boy, perhaps the most hideous part of this nightmare, this child's death was 100% preventable. robert should never have been in his mother's care. she was on probation for cracking the skull of her other young son. she reportedly can't read or write, but certainly child protective services can, and they should have taken one quick read of her history and her boyfriend's rap sheet and never left poor robert under the care of this couple. shame on you, child services. where were you when poor robert manwill was being beaten to death? i'm jane velez-mitchell and that's my issue. >> tonight on "issues" two ours of unseen footage into the life of octo mom nadya suleman aired yesterday. why did she do this documentary?

watch tonight on hbl. a texas police officer suspected of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend let her go after a standoff with police. julio rey and a woman in a vacant house. he apparently shot at police and dragged her upstairs. she's also a police officer, by the way. and authorities say he let her go, then killed himself. >> it's an emotional roller coaster and we are happy on one side and, unfortunately, it's a bad day on the other side. >> officer rachel hillsman wasn't hurt in the standoff. she and the suspected kidnapper did have a child together, but had broken off their relationship earlier this year. most couples don't plan on saying i do in a hospital but as andy harvey with our after florida yate in arizona, for one couple the hospital rooms turns out the be the perfect place for their wedding. >> reporter: among the stetdz scope monitors and medical equipment, timothy gets ready for a very big day. his wedding. a week ago, the 33-year-old navy

s.e.a.l. was injured in a skydiving training accident. >> misjudged my turn coming in to land my parachute and evidently i hate car. >> reporter: he was left with a shattered heel, broken legs and neck, but the accident ended up bringing him and his fiancee, lacy, a lot closer. >> i don't want to lose him. i was so glad to have him that i couldn't wait anymore. >> reporter: they decided to move their 2011 wedding date to today. the place? timothy's hospital room at the maricopa county medical center. >> i wanted to marry her for a long time. >> i am so, so happy. i wanted to marry this man for the longest time. >> reporter: they did it in front of doctors, nurses and new friends. >> i now pronounce you man and wife. you may now kiss your bride. >> we may not have had the dream wedding we wanted, but this could -- far surpasses anything i could have ever come up with my own mind. >> i couldn't ask for anything more than what happened today. >> oh, best of luck to them. once again, thanks to andy

harvey with our affiliate in arizona there. just because you have limited wardrobe, that doesn't automatically make you a fashion disaster. how to work it. óóóóóóóóóóóóóóóó

i'll start by posing a couple of questions. we'll welcome phone callers as well. allow me, sir, to begin with this. did secretary sebelius misspeak -- >> the president pitching his health care reform plan to a conservative-leaning audience, on the air. mr. obama appeared on michael smerconish's show today, a philadelphia broadcaster. it was live at the white house. and he took calls from listeners. deputy political director paul steinhauser joins us now to break down what the president had to say. paul, hi. >> chuck, how are you? that was about an hour or two ago. right now the president is speaking to a very different crowd, same subject, though, chuck, health care reform. the president -- you can see live pictures here. he's here in washington at the

democratic national committee's headquarters. these are people who are very committed to the president's health care reforms. these are the people that are doing the grassroots work. he's laying out the strategy and the message. as you mentioned, though, about an hour and a half ago he was on conservative talk radio with philadelphia-based michael smerconish who was over at the white house. the president talked about hoping -- still hoping for a bipartisan agreement, but he says it appears republicans may not be enthusiastic about bipartisan bill. take a listen. >> and i'm confident we're going to get it done, and as far as negotiations with republicans, my attitude has always been, let's see if we can get this done with some consensus. i would love to have more republicans engaged and involved in this process. i think early on, a decision was made by the republican leadership that said, look, let's not give him a victory. maybe we can have a replay of

1993-'94 when clinton came in. he failed on health care and we won in the midterm elections and we got the majority. >> president also guaranteed another caller that health care reform will get done this year. chuck? >> did he have anything to say about the charges that he changed to a public option? was that just a trial balloon the white house was floating? what did he say? >> he said nothing has changed when it comes to a public option. the president was asked about that, and he said honestly, nothing has change. maybe the media got excited earlier this week when they talked about the white house changing its stance. he said he still wants the public option as one of many options people would have, but he wanted to be clear nobody would be obligated to choose the public plan. minutes ago, nancy polest i out west, she said there's no way i can pass a baill in the house without a public option. nancy pelosi talking about health care. chuck? >> he still wants a consensus, wants this to be a bipartisan effort, right? >> yes, sir.

right. >> vice president joe biden says the obama administration is giving more than $1 billion to hospitals in an effort to help them convert to electronic medical recordkeeping. in an announcement, biden said that money would come from the $787 billion stimulus plan. the vice president says electronic records will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again, and in the process, deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering it as we're doing now in this exponential curve of medical health care costs that the public doesn't realize, understandably, that we provide about 50% of the health care already, some indirectly by the federal government -- medicare, medicaid and -- i mean, there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> the money will become available by october 1st, the beginning of the new federal fiscal year. an american woman who lost her daughter in the bombing of pan am flight 103 in 1988 says

scotland's decision to release the convicted bomber is appalling, disgusting and so sickening. according to media reports, abdel baset al megrahi has arrived home in libya. he served eight years of a life sentence. he was the only person found guilty in the bombing case. scottish officials say they released him from prison because he's dying of prostate cancer. the white house says it deeply regrets scotland's decision. president obama says al megrahi should be placed under house arrest in libya. 270 people lost their lives in the 1988 bombing. the majority of those killed were americans. as we mentioned, many of the victims' families say they're outraged that al megrahi has been released. >> it is absolutely sickening when you say compassion, i feel ill. i feel physically ill. that is the most misplaced compassion i can imagine. i mean, we could weep, couldn't we, for poor old adolf hitler there, gee, and maybe mussolini.

we should feel sorry for these people, i guess. >> relatives of some of the victims on pan am flight 103 believe he was a scapegoat, that it's not really clear who carried out the bombing. >> i want to see the closure of the justice, which is justice for the relatives of the victims and also justice for people generally because until we know the full answer to lockerbie, we shall be left in doubt. >> we want your views on this. there's a lot of passion here. what do you think of the scottish government's decision to release the lockerbie bomber because he's terminally ill? call us now, toll free, 1-877-835-5456. there's the e-mail address. click under "your views." or join the text poll right now. take part by texting views a if you think yes, he should be released so he can go home and die. or views b if you think, no way. he should not be released. hurricane bill is still way out in the open atlantic but it has weakened slightly.

forecasters say it's unlikely this storm will make landfall in the u.s., but they've not ruled out the chance for a direct hit on cape cod, massachusetts. bermuda posted a hurricane watch this morning. the storm's center expected to move between the island territory and the earn u.s. on saturday. there's the latest projection. right now, bill's a category 3 hurricane with winds up to 120 miles per hour. forecasters say it could strengthen a bit more to category 4 by tomorrow. former nfl star plaxico burress will spend the next few years behind bars. this morning he pleaded guilty to a weapons charge and agreed to a two-year prison term. he will be sentenced next month. the former new york giants wide receiver accidentally shot himself at a new york nightclub last november with an unlicensed gun. he caught the winning touchdown in the giants' upset win over the new england patriots in super bowl xlii. with good behavior he could be out of prison after serving 20 months. the other grandma of bristol palin's baby is going to prison, but hear why she got a shorter

sentence for drug charges.

people in india are getting the keys to the tata nano, the cheapest car in the world. what does it mean for the u.s. auto industry? hln money expert clark howard breaks down how this new car might help your wallet in the future. >> the nano car, the world's cheapest automobile, is now in people's driveways in india. this car that you can buy in india for $2,500 -- that's right -- a full four-door car, seats four people you like, a fifth you don't, is now available and selling like crazy. you may wonder, why am i telling you about a car that's only available in india? well, big news. this car just passed the european union safety and crash tests, which are somewhat

similar to ours. and europeans are already buzzing that they're going to be able to buy a car that, even with the modifications for europe, will end up being somewhere around $3,500. this car is cheaper than you ever imagined, about the price of a motorcycle. i'm clark howard. for more ways to save, go to cnn.com/clarkhoward. >> don't miss every weekend clark howard with great consumer advice, saturdays and sundays at noon, 4:00 eastern. he'll help you save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off. the cash for clunkers program seems to be a victim of its own success and may be running out of time again. "the washington post" says dozens of car dealers are pulling the plug on the program, that they're not getting paid by the government for the money they have basically fronted to consumers. >> this supposedly 400,000

vehicle transaction that happened and only 2% of them have been approved for reimbursement. that's very poor track record at this point. >> they are not going to ask for more money for this program at the white house so the $3 billion that's on the table is all that's left. when that runs out, it's not likely there will be any more money coming behind it chs these dealers are opting out. might not be opting out of all that much more of the cash for clunkers program at this point. >> today, general motors announced it will begin providing cash advances to dealers waiting for government rebates. transportation secretary ray lahood promises dealers will eventually get paid, but he says the obama administration could announce an end date for cash for clunkers by tomorrow. the tough economic times are making it tougher for lenders to collect on what they're owed, and one state attorney general says that's made some of them cross the line. mary snow has more. >> reporter: michelle says she'll never forget the call she got the same day her daughter was diagnosed with autism.

a man posing as a lawyer claimed she owed $4,400 and said her arrest was imminent if she didn't pay up. >> he was getting very insistent, started -- i don't remember all the words. started talking about being arrested. if there's nobody there, if your husband can't make it home, child protective services will have to take your kids. >> reporter: she wasn't actually in debt, but feeling pressure, she relented and lost $900. dorothy teared up listening to the voice mail left at her home over a $187 bill she'd already paid. >> you are totally ghetto. second of all, ma'am, learn english, get an education instead of sitting on your fat daerriere all day long. you might want to try to get educated enough to at least be able to say payment plan instead of payment pan. you uneducated -- >> reporter: new york attorney general andrew cuomo says that call and others in which law

enforcement is percent natd and some even threatening sexual assault are tied to operators in 13 companies he's now trying to shut down in new york. >> the tactics, they are so disturbing, so threatening that they send to be effective. that's why they do it. >> reporter: private attorney joe morrow represents debt collection abuse victims. he says there's been an increase in cases, tying it to the economic downturn. >> there is no money to be pulled out of consumers these days, and as that happens, debt collectors become more desperate. >> reporter: but the trade group for debt collectors says don't paint them all with the same brush. it estimates rogue collectors make up about 10% of the industry. >> the harassing phone calls and the aggressive behavior is absolutely unacceptable. >> reporter: three individuals in buffalo, new york, were also nailed. we reached a lawyer for one who said he'll fight the charges. mary snow, cnn, new york. >> now to the michael jackson investigation.

reporters were back at the office of jackson's dermatologist yesterday. you can see reporters swarming the lead investigator from the l.a. coroner's office. they had said more than a week ago their investigation was finished. they searched dr. arnold klein's office july 14th. his attorney says investigators were looking to corroborate their information and that klein wasn't questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to maintain his utter cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he has done so. he will continue to do so, and i am confident, as his counsel, that at the end of the day, he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that exists out there in the media. thank you very much. >> jackson visited klein's office three days before he died. klein has denied giving him any dangerous drugs. the coroner's office has said it won't release its report on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigation. well, we're getting late word that his burial may be

dlid. the singer was supposed to be laid to rest on august 29th, which would have been his 51st birthday. joe jackson tells the website tmz that burial has been pushed back to the 31st. there are things the family needs to get in order before michael is laid to rest. the family's public list, though, wouldn't confirm or deny that report. the other grandma of bristol palin's baby will be going to prison on drug charges. sherry johnston will likely get three years behind bars. she was using oxycontin legally until her insurance stopped paying for it. levi and sarah palin's daughter called off hire wedding after their son, tripp, was born. a georgia family's dream has finally come true. all 24 of them moved into their new home but it took a whole lot more people to get them there.

polls have closed in afghanistan's presidential

election, seen as a crucial test for stability and democracy. taliban threats dampened voter turnout in some areas, especially in the taliban stronghold in the south. despite tight security, afghan officials say 26 people were killed in attacks. incumbent president hamid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has distanced itself from karzai, criticizing his ties with former warlords. karzai's best challenger has identified himself as the best chance for change. we got some breaking news out of memphis from the sports world. the ncaa has forced the university of memphis to vacate its records set in 38 victories in the 2007-2008 basketball season. the association says the school had an ineligible player on the roster. in that season, memphis won a record 38 games. it eventually lost to k.u., kansas, in the finals of the ncaa tournament.

again, the university of memphis has been forced to vacate all of its wins from the '07-'08 basketball year. a texas police officer suspected of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend let her go and killed himself after a standoff with police. police found julio trey reyes and the woman in a vacant house. she's also a police officer with the cady independent school district. reyes shot at police and dragged her upstairs. police say he let her go, and then killed himself. >> it's an emotional roller coaster. we are happy on one side and, unfortunately, it's a bad day on the other side. >> officer rachel hillsman wasn't hurt in the standoff. she and the suspected kidnapper had a child together but had broken off their relationship earlier this year. police across canada are looking for a former reality tv contestant wanted for questioning in the death of his bikini model ex-wife. that's what police in washington state and california are saying about ryan alexander jenkins, who's canadian. they're not calling him -- they

are calling -- they're not calling him a suspect but they do want to question him in the death of 28-year-old jasmine fiore. her nude body was found over the weekend. a preliminary coroner's report indicates she was strangled. >> our fear is that he might possibly be en route to canada. we were able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported miss fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins was a contestant on the vh 1 show "megan wants a millionaire." police say they got a tip that a man matching that description had slipped into canada by walking across a remote borderline, point roberts washington state which shares a peninsula with british columbia. things may seem cleaner and greener today in mexico city, a

day after a law banning many plastic bags took effect. supermarkets and many other stores are no longer allowed to use bags that are not biodegradable. the u.n. agency says plastic bags are one of the top forms of litter and pose a major threat to wildlife. san francisco enacted a similar ban two years ago. a couple with special needs children has more room to spread out. take a look. a new 7,100 square foot home. they moved in yesterday, ending years of struggle in a crumb ling old house with plumbing problems. >> my heart is filled with joy. i just -- i'm overwhelmed. i just can't believe it. people say to me, well, when are you going to stop adopting? i say, well, when god stops sending them. >> with a deal with a tv show to build a house fell through, an atlanta-based group stepped in and helped raise $600,000 for the project. we've been asking your views on one of our top stories today. a man convicted for his role in the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, has been set free from prison. he is near death, they say.

the scottish government says a compassionate release. some of you have a very different opinion. not long ago, this man had limited mobility.

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president obama took his health care push to conservative-leaning radio listeners today. in a broad cass frt the white house, he talked to philadelphia radio host michael smerconish. smerconish is generally seen as conservative, though he supported obama last year and is an abortion rights supporter. the president stood by his coverage should be part of health care overhaul. >> hi. until i heard you say that a private option is just a sliver of your health care proposal recently, i think myself and many americans thought that pretty much was your proposal. >> i know. >> my question is, could you please quickly list five or six bullet points of what legislation must include for you to be willing to sign it? for instance, employer mandates? tort reform, illegal immigrants,

what about them? must club a public option. >> i, i would be happy to. first of all, you mentioned illegal immigrants. this has been an example of just pure misinformation out there. none of the bills that have been voted on in congress and none of the proposals coming out of the white house propose giving coverage to illegal immigrants. none of them. that has never been on the table. nobody has discussed it. so, everybody who's listening out there, when you start hearing that somehow this is all designed to provide health insurance to illegal immigrants, that is simply not true. and has never been the case. >> what is their fate, if i might ask? there's a 1986 law on the book that says if you show up at an e.r. you've got to be treated. >> well, that will continue because we don't want a situation in which some child, even if they're illegal immigrant, shows up in an emergency room with tuberculosis and nobody's giving them treatment and then they're going back to the playground and playing next to our kids.

so, i think there's -- there is a basic standard of decency where if somebody's in a death situation or a severe illness that we're going to provide them emergency care. but nobody has talked about providing health insurance to illegal immigrants. i want to make that absolutely clear. now, tracy, you had a good point about what are the bullet points that i want? number one, it's got to be definite-neutral. this has to be paid for because, in the past, some of the health care plans that we put forward have not been paid for. a good example of this was the prescription drug benefit for seniors. that was a important thing to do, but we never actually figured out how to pay for it. that just went directly into the deficit and the national debt. we can't afford to do that. so that would be point number one. point number two, it has to bend the cost curve. what that means is that we've got to create a plan that experts credibly say will reduce health care inflation because if all we're doing is adding more

people but we're not controlling costs, that will blow up the deficit over the long term, and it will blow up the burdens on individual families and businesses. we've got to get control of our costs. we spend $6,000 more than any other advanced country, per person, on health care. that's number two. number three, we've got to have the insurance reforms i talked about for people who already have health insurance, and that means making sure you can get health insurance even if you've got a pre-existing condition, making sure that you're not burdened by lifetime caps, making sure that insurance companies can't drop you just because you get sick or because you're older or because you're not as healthy. so making sure that their basic insurance protections, that's very important. number four is i want to make sure that we have a health exchange, as i just described, that is similar to what members of congress have, where you will have a set of options if you're a small business, if you're an individual, self-employed, you have trouble getting health insurance right now, you can go

and look at a bunch of options and we've got to make it affordable for middle class families. so part of the plan has to be that if you can't afford a market-based premium that we're giving you a little bit of help and you're able to get health insurance. choice, competition, reducing costs. those are the things that i want to see accomplished in this health reform bill. >> the president said he sees the public option as one choice and that nobody should feel obligated to go into a public plan. ailing senator ted kennedy, edward m. kennedy, has sent a poignant letter to leaders in massachusetts asking them to change the law to allow them to replace him in the senate very quickly. this comes amid concern about his battle with brain cancer, although aides say there's no change in his condition. senator kennedy wants the governor, duvall patrick, to be able to temporarily appoint someone to the seat when he dies. current state law requires a special election within five months of a vacancy.

well, bill, a hurricane, has weakened to category 3. that's the latest in the open atlantic. but maybe not for long. the storm could gain more strength again as it moves closer to bermuda and the united states. cnn meteorologist chad myers is here to tell us what's next. chad, hi. what's the latest? >> what's the latest is that the hurricane hunter aircraft, chuck, flew through this thing about an hour ago, and they found 154-mile-per-hour wind up where they fly, not at the surface, but 154. so you take that down, you divide that by a couple of numbers and we're probably going to get this back up to a category 4 at the 5:00 hour. i'm not sure. but so close, basically who cares? what's the difference at that point in time, right? what we have, we have all of these huge swells. some of the swells that are being estimated by the high seas forecast are 56 feet. can you imagine a 56-foot wall of water? obviously, there are reefs out here that are breaking some of those swells, but there are very large swells northern puerto rico, back at the top of the

d.r., also into the b.b.i. as well. those swells will approach the u.s. for the end of the weekend. even the turks and caicos and the bahamas as well. those big swells could make some very dangerous surf conditions across parts of the u.s., east coast and eventually even by sunday all the way up into new england. that's the biggest threat for the largest area from bill. probably some fatalities due to those rip currents. stay out of the water and do the best you can. keep the kids out of the water. if you're going to the shore, get a hotel with a pool and put them in there. way safer been having big waves crashing onshore here as a category 3, 4. back to a 3, then turning away from the u.s. east coast. i know it's hard to see on this map. i'm going to make it much, much bigger, give you a better idea. there is still a small possibility -- not a probability, a possibility that this cone could still be in play, left or right, from the center line. and that the u.s. east coast could still be affected by the center of bill. i don't think so, but it's still a possibility.

we will still get some effects up here up and down the east coast and certainly into nova scotia, newfoundland as the weekend goes by. depending how close it gets, winds could be from 30 to 100 miles per hour. i think you need to pay attention if you live up here in new england because this storm, if it wobbles to the left, will be a lot closer than maybe that center line would show right now. chuck? >> puerto rico, virgin islands, haiti, they dodged a bullet, didn't they? >> absolutely. no question about it. and so did the u.s. southeast coast because of how the high pressure is moving away and it's going to allow that hurricane to turn around. remember, andrew was the same place. it didn't turn. hugo was the same place. it didn't turn. this one, at least the forecast has always been for that big turn. let's wait for it. >> keep turning, bill. >> absolutely. >> chad, thanks. >> all right. >> all right. the man convicted in the bombing of pan am flight 103 in scotland, 1988, has now arrived home in libya, according to all media reports. abdel baset al megrahi was released from prison in scotland.

he'd only served eight years of a life sentence. he was the only person found guilty in the case. scottish officials say they released him on a compassion -- because he was dying because of prostate cancer. the white house says it deeply regrets scotland's decision. president obama urges libya to place al megrahi under house arrest in libya. 270 people perished in the 1988 bombing. the majority of those killed were americans. many of the victims' families say they're outraged that he has been released. >> it is absolutely sickening when you say compassion. i feel ill. i feel physically ill. that is the most misplaced compassion i can imagine. i mean, we could weep, couldn't we, for poor old adolf hitler there, gee, and maybe mussolini and -- we should feel sorry for these people, i guess. >> relatives of some of the victims believes al megrahi was a scapegoat. that it's not entirely clear who actually carried out the bombing. >> i want to see the closure of

the justice, which is justice for the relatives of the victims and also justice for people generally, because until we know the full answer to lockerbie, we shall be left in doubt. >> we invite your views on this. what do you think of the scottish government's decision to release the lockerbie bomber early because he's material naturally ill? call us toll free, 1-877-835-5456. e-mail address, cnn.com/hln. look for "your views." or text your view and send it to hln tv. join the polls. views, a, yes, that was the right call or, no, he should not be released. we have some breaking news to tell you out of memphis. the ncaa has forced the university of memphis to vacate its record-setting 38 victories from the 2007-2008 basketball season. the association said the school has had an ineligible player on

the roster. in that season, memphis won a record 38 games and eventually lost to the kansas jayhawks in the finals of the ncaa tournament. again, the university of memphis has now been forced to vacate all its wins from the '07-'08 basketball year. former nfl star plaxico burress will spend the next few years behind bars. this morning, he pleaded guilty to a weapons charge and agreed to a two-year prison term. he'll be sentenced next month. the former new york giants wide receiver accidentally shot himself at a new york nightclub last november with an unlicensed gun. burress caught the winning touchdown in the giants' upset win over the new england patriots in super bowl xlii. with good behavior, he could be out of prison after serving 20 months. a south african track star blew away the competition in a women's race, and now authorities want to make sure she she's, in fact, a woman.

the cash for clunkers program seems to be a victim of its own success and may be running out of time again. "the washington post" says dozens of car dealers are pulling the plug on the program. apparently they're not getting paid by the government for the money they've basically fronted to consumers. >> this supposedly 400,000 vehicle transactions that happened, and only 2% of them have been approved for reimbursement. that's a very poor track record at this point. >> they are not going to ask for more money for this program at the white house, so the $3 billion that's on the table is sort of all that's left. when that runs out, it's not likely that there's going to be anymore money coming behind it. so these dealers are opting out, might not be opting of all that much more of the cash for clunkers program. >> today, general motors announced it will begin

advancing cash advances to dealers. ray lahood promises dealers will eventually get paid, but he says the administration could announce an end date for cash for clunkers by tomorrow. americans are living longer than ever. a new cdc report says life ek peck tant si in the u.s. has reached an all-time high, nearly 78 years. that means a baby born in 2007 is expected to live that long. the report says death rates are down in almost all leading causes of death, like cancer and heart disease. still, the u.s. lags behind 30 other countries in expected life span. japan has the longest life ek peck tan si at 83. vice president joe biden says the obama administration's giving more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical records. in an announcement this morning, biden said the money would come from the $787 billion stimulus plan. the vice president says electronic records will be more efficient and safer for patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a

little healthier again, and, in the process, deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering it as we're doing now in this expo ten shl curve of medical health care costs that the public doesn't realize, understandably, that we provide about 50% of the health care already, some indirectly by the federal government, with medicare, medicaid. there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> the money will become available the 1st of october, the beginning of the new federal fiscal year. your heart healthy breakfast may be dressed up junk food. a price waterhouse coopers research firm study shows food seen as having extra nutrients may not be as healthy as you think. it cites products like sugary cereals with extra fiber or candy bars with vitamins. experts say people think they're good for them, and they end up eating too much. whenever you visit london you're always warned to be on the guard for pickpockets, but some former practitioners of that criminal art are turning over a new leaf.

they've become put-pockets. in places like trafalgar square, the ex-thieves are secretly slipping $5 notes in unguarded pockets and handbags. it's a promotion by a british broadband provider. about 100 british pounds sterling has been given away. millions of ballots are still being counted in afghanistan's presidential election. taliban threats dampened voter turnout in many areas, especially in a taliban stronghold in the south. despite tight security, afghan officials say 26 people were killed in attacks. incumbent president hamid karzai is running for a second term. the obama administration has distanced itself from karzai, criticizing his ties with former warlords. his main challenger, his former foreign minister, abdullah abdullah. he's portrayed himself as the best chance for change. preliminary results are expected by saturday. the other grandma of bristol palin's baby is going to prison.

hear why she got a shorter sentence than usual.

i'm jane el vez mitchell and

here's my issue. a sick twists not a vicious murder of 8-year-old robert manwill. his mom, melissa jenkins, and her ex-con boyfriend, daniel ehrlich, are charged with killing this adorable boy. perhaps the most hideous part of this nightmare, this child's death was 100% preventable. robert should never have been in his mother's care. she was on probation for cracking the skull of her other young son. she reportedly can't read or write, but certainly child protective services can. and they should have taken one quick read of her history and her boyfriend's rap sheet and never let poor robert under the care of this couple. shame on you, child services! where were you when poor robert manwell was being beaten to death? i'm jane velez-mitchell and that's my issue. >> tonight on "issues!" two hours -- two hours of unseen footage in the life of octomom nadya suleman. it aired yesterday. why did she do this revealing documentary? get clips of it tonight, 7:00,

jane velez-mitchell with "issues!" here on hln. 7:00 eastern. investigators were back at the home and office of michael jackson's issues. investigators were back at the home of michael jackson's dermatologist yesterday. they said more than a week ago their investigation was finished. they searched dr. arnold klein's office july 14. his attorney said investigators were looking to corroborate their information and that klein wasn't questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to maintain his utter cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of the death of michael jackson. he has done so, he will continue to do so, and i am confident as his counsel that at the end of the day, he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo and speculation that exists out there. thank you very much. >> jackson had visited klein's office three days before he died. klein denies giving him any

dangerous drugs. the coroner's office says it won't release its report on jackson's death until the police wraps up its investigation. we're getting word that jackson's burial may be delayed. the singer was supposed to be buried on august 29, what would have been his 51st birthday. the burial has been pushed back to the 31st because there are things the family has to get in order before michael was laid to rest. his publicist wouldn't confirm or deny that tlc report. sheri johnston, levi's mom, pleaded guilty yesterday to possession of oxycontin with intent to deliver. they agreed to a shorter sentence she was already using oxycontin legally until her insurance stopped paying for it. levi and her daughter-in-law put off their marriage date until their baby was born.

some are getting help from a huge new program. a a a a a a ab

the man convicted of bombing pan am flight 103, killing 270 people is now free. why did a judge decide to let him go? . as he battle forz his life, senator ted kennedy makes a request from lawmakers. they agree to jail time. find out how long plaxico burress will be behind bars for shooting himself. i'm michelle cary. i hope you're having a great day. the welcome home of a convicted terrorist will bring

media attention. he is back home in libya after being freed from a prison in scotland. the associated press says thousands were at that airport in tripoli to greet the only person found guilty in the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie. he was to serve a life sentence. they released him because he is dying of prostate cancer. the white house says it deeply regrets scotland's decision. 270 people lost their lives in that bombing. it happened back in 1988. the majority of those killed were americans. president obama took his health care push to the conservative-leaning radio listeners today in a broadcast from the white house. the president talked to philadelphia radio host michael foconis. foconis is generally seen as a conserve tis, but he did support

obama last year. he believes the legislation will pass. >> i'm confident we'll get it done, and as far as negotiations with the republicans, my attitude has always been, let's see if we can get this done with some consensus. i would love to have more republicans engaged and involved in this process. i think early on a decision was made by the republican leadership that said, look, let's not give him a victory. maybe we can have a replay of 1983-'84 when clinton came in. he failed on health care and then won in the mid term elections and we got a majority. he joined a conference call to promote his health care plan. they have given more than $1 billion to hospitals to help them convert to electronic medical records. they said the money would come from the $787 billion stimulus plan. the vice president says

electronic records will be more efficient and also safer for the patients. >> we're here today to hopefully begin to make our system a little healthier again, and in the process, deal with preserving america's wealth rather than squandering it as we're doing now in this exponential curve of medical health care costs that the public doesn't realize, understandably, that we provide about 50% of the health care already, some indirectly by the federal government. medicare, medicaid, there's a gigantic component here for financial solvency for the united states. >> well, this money will become available on october 1, which is the beginning of the new federal fiscal year. ailing senator ted kennedy has sent a poignant letter to massachusetts leader to ask them to change a law to allow them to quickly replace him in the senate. there has been growing concern about kennedy's battle in his brain cancer, at aides say there is no change in his condition.

he wants to be able to temporarily appoint someone in the seat when he dies. they require a special election within five months of his vacancy. we're hearing that michael jackson's burial may end up being delayed. the singer was supposed to be buried on august 29. that would have been his 51st birthday. joe jackson is telling tmz the burial has been pushed to august 31st because there are many things the family still needs to get in order before michael can be laid to rest. but the family's publicist isn't actually confirming or denying that tmz report. so not really sure. investigators were back at the office of jackson's dermatologist yesterday. you can see reporters swarming the late investigate or from the l.a. coroner's office. more than a week ago they said their investigation was actually finished. they served dr. arnold klein's office on july 14. his attorney says investigators are looking to corroborate their information and that klein was not questioned. >> dr. arnold klein wants to

maintain his utter cooperation with any and all law enforcement authority with respect to the investigation into the cause of death of michael jackson. he has done so, he will continue to do so, and i'm confident as his counsel that at the end of the day, he will be fully exonerated of any and all innuendo or speculation that exists out there in the media. thank you very much. >> jackson did visit klein's office three days before he died. klein has denied giving him any type of dangerous drugs. the coroner's office has said it will not be releasing its report on jackson's death until police wrap up their investigation. the man accused of attacking milwaukee mayor tom barrett has been charged, and if convicted, he could spend years in jail. 20-year-old anthony peters was charged today with felony counts of first-degree reckless injury and theft. also charged with two misdemeanors. in a criminal complaint, peters reportedly admitted he got into an argument with his

one-year-old daughter's grandmother saturday night, and when barrett responded to the woman's calls for help by calling 911, peertsz reportedly punched him in the face and beat him with a metal bar. barrett is recovering from a broken hand and injuries to his teeth. plaxico burress will spend the next few years in jail. this morning he pleaded guilty to a weapons charge and agreed to a two-year jail term. he'll be sentenced next month. the former new york giants wide receiver accidentally shot himself in a new york nightclub last december with an unlicensed gun. with good behavior, he could be released after serving 20 months. his lawyer said his client's celebrity actually worked against him. >> if plaxico burress were not a high-profile individual, there never would have been a case. if he was john doe, he would have walked out of that club. nobody at the hospital reported a gunshot wound.

if he were irresponsible, if he were not a law-abiding citizen, he could have thrown that gun away. burress caught the winning patriots in super bowl xxxii. >> it's unlikely hurricane bill will make landfall in the united states. the storm's center is expected to move between island territory in the eastern u.s. on saturday. right now, bill is a category 3 hurricane. winds are up to about 120 miles an hour. forecasters say it could strengthen to a category 4 storm sometime tomorrow. millions of ballots are being counted in afghanistan's presidential election. this is seen as a crucial test for stability and democracy. taliban threats, though,

dampened voter turnout in some areas especially in the south because that is a taliban stronghold. despite strong security, afghan officials say 26 people were killed in attacks. president hamid karzai is running for a second term. they have distanced himself from karzai, criticizing his former ties with warlords. abdullah abdullah is his oppone opponent. results are expected saturday. he's back home instead of locked up behind bars. many relatives of the victims of the pan am bombing over lockerbie, they are outraged. we'll hear what you think of his early release.

the only person convicted in

the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland has reportedly arrived back home in libya. sco scottish officials released him from a prison there because he had advanced prostate cancer. the white house says it deeply regrets scotland's decision. president obama is urging libya to place him under house arrest. the victims' families say they're outraged. >> it is absolutely sickening. when you say "compassion," i feel ill, i feel physically ill. that is the most misplaced compassion i could imagine. we could weep, couldn't we, for poor old adolph hitler there, and maybe mussolini. we should feel sorry for him, i guess. >> they believe it is a scapegoat and it's not clear exactly who carried out the

bombing. >> i'd like to see closure of the justice, which is justice for the relatives of the victims and also justice for people generally. because until we know the full answer for lockerbie, we should be less in doubt. >> i'm asking for your views on this. how do you feel about this early release? do you think he should remain in prison until his death? he did have a life sentence. john is calling us from georgia. okay, john, what do you recall? >> caller: honestly, i'm appalled, and i am totally, totally disgusted. i was in the military at the time and i was scheduled for that very flight to come home during the holiday season. >> is that right? >> caller: yes, ma'am. for some strange reason, call it define intervention, a few days before the flight, i couldn't sleep, and i just tossed and

turned. what i did, i got up and changed my flight, flew a few days earlier, and after i got home, i found out about the lockerbie air disaster. i checked my old itinerary, and sure enough, i was supposed to be on that flight. they want to talk about compassion for the accused? what about compassion for the family? it was wrong and shouldn't have happened. that man should go back to jail. a life sentence is a life sentence, not sentence until you get an illness. >> john, thank you. julie is calling us from san jose. julie, do you agree with that phone call we just had from john? >> caller: no, i don't. i think the right thing to do oftentimes is the hardest thing to do, but scotland did the right thing. i think an eye for an eye is old testament, and it's part of an old pattern of traditions from people who still live in the dark ages. and it only promotes more anger.

>> julia, wait, can i challenge you on that? would an eye for an eye actually been the death penalty, though? >> no, but revenge for -- >> okay, i see what you're saying. >> caller: yes. i think that scotland is breaking a cycle that we've been going through for hundreds of thousands of years with warfare and revenge and that, and i think they're leading by good example. i think it was a bold move. it's more like the new testament. i mean, jesus was considered to be, you know, a bold rebel who wanted to change the old way and go to a new, and i really believe that's the way we should be heading. >> okay, ju lerlea, thank you f your phone call.

brenda is calling. we have one person who likes this move, one person who didn't. would you like to be the tie breaker here? >> caller: i don't think he should be getting out. i think he should be in jail the rest of his life. i lost a sister-in-law in 1958, and i had a daughter a year later, and my daughter never got to see her aunt because a person killed her. they should stay in jail for the rest of their lives because he had no right to kill all these people. i feel sorry for the people who got killed. >> you don't have a personal connection to this specifically, but you do know what it's like to have to live with the results of crime, and because of that you say a sentence is a sentence and you should have to deal with it. brenda, thank you for your phone call and for sharing something that personal with us. we appreciate it. let's get to some comments that have been really passionate comments. this is what nathan wrote. i personally think he should have stayed in prison. they have health care facilities in prison. there are many people in jail in the u.s. who are dying of cancer

but they are not letting criminals loose here. anna marie wrote this. i understand this man took many lives, but just because he lost compassion for human life doesn't mean we have to as well. terminally ill patients suffer regardless of whether they're in prison or at home. barbara wrote, eight years for 200 deaths, that's awful. they have cancer or other problems. thanks for your views on this. thanks for your e-mails, phone calls and texted. we want more of your comments here. we'll be talking about this very topic more. we'll continue to take your calls and your e mal-mails on t particular story. go to cnn.com and there's directions on how to get your e-mail through.

there is talk about the bikini model ex-wife, though he may not even be in the state or even in the country. the clues he may have slipped into canada.

the question -- the husband of the bikini model ex-husband may be in canada. they are calling him a suspect, but they want to question him in

the death of 28 year-old jasmine fiore chlts she was found stuffed in a suitcase. autopsy results indicate fiore was strangled. >> our fear is he may be enroute to canada. we were able to ascertain his involvement with the help of the los angeles police department. mr. jenkins reported ms. fiore missing the evening that we discovered her body. he was the last person seen with her. >> jenkins is a contestant on the vh1 show, "megan wants a millionaire." a man fitting his description took a boat to st. robert peninsula and walked across the border to british columbia. they have forced them to

vacant its record-setting 38 victories from its 2007-2008 basketball season. the association said the school had an ineligible flare on its roste rosters. they won a record 38 games and eventually lost to kansas in the finals in the ncaa tournament. wow. he continues to live up to his name. look at this. he set a world record in the men's 200-meter sprint. he completed it in 19.9 seconds. he set a world record in the 100-meter sprint on sunday as well. another good day for the market, thanks to a bunch of economics reports. lisa taylor joins us from new york to break it all down for us. we'll take whatever we can get, felicia. >> the dow industrial gained back all of monday's big losses.

they suggested a mix of data but decided to focus on the positive. the dow industrial rose 70 points to close at 150. now, as for those economic reports, the index of leading economic indicators in july rose for the fourth consecutive month. the conference board, which compiles the index said the indicators suggest the recession is bottoming out and that economic activity will likely begin to recover very soon. results are showing growth in manufacturing this month. still, analysts believe it's the labor market to be the biggest hurdle to overcome, and the filings for new claims of unemployment rose last week to 560,000. analysts expected to see a drop. cash for clunkers is officially coming to an end. the department of transportation just announced after a, quote, wildly successful run, it will come to a close on monday at 8:00 p.m. evidently, hundreds of the auto dealers were pulling out of the program and that they're worried the government wouldn't be able

to reimburse them for the sales. if you've got a clunker, take it in before monday. >> thank you for the heads up on that. what a program. my goodness. thanks, felicia. more to come. dddddddd

plt president obama says libya's welcome home will impact that country. these are new pictures we got for you showing the lockerbie bomber freed after arriving back in libya after being freed from prison in scotland. thousands of people were here at the airport to greet him. he's the only person found guilty in the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie. he served eight years of a life sentence. they released him because he is dying of prostate cancer. the white house says it deeply regrets this decision by scotland.

270 people lost their lives in the 1988 bombing and the majority of those people killed were americans. many victims' families say they're outraged at the release. >> it is absolutely sickening. when you say "compassion," i feel ill, i feel physically ill. that is the most misplaced compassion i can imagine. we could weep, couldn't we, for poor adolph hitler there, and gee, maybe mussolini. we should feel sorry for these people, i guess. >> relatives of some of the victims believe he was actually a scapegoat and it's not exactly clear who really carried out the bombing. >> i wanted to see the closure of the justice, which is justice for the relatives of the vic timsz and al timz and also justice for people generally. because until we know the full answer of lockerbie, we will be

left in doubt. >> stories struck a chord with a lot of you. we're asking for your opinions. we want to know what you think of the decision to release the lockerbie bomber from prison. the cash for clunkers program seems to be a victim of its own success. we learned moments ago they're running out of time again. the transportation department just confirmed those cash incentives will end monday evening. the program got a second round of funding from congress just a couple weeks ago when it blew through its initial funding in a matter of days. dozens of car dealers are pulling out of the program. they say they're not getting paid by the government for the money they're basically fronting to consumers. today general motors announced they will be giving cash advancements to dealers walitin for those rebates. the government promises they will eventually get paid. president obama pushes health care to conservative

listeners on radio today. the president talked to philadelphia radio host michael ficoners. president obama thinks the legislation will get it past. >> i'm confident we'll get it done, and as far as negotiations with republicans, my attitude has always been, let's see if we can get this done with some consensus. i would love to have more republicans engaged and involved in this process. i think early on a decision was made by the republican leadership that said, look, let's not give them a victory. maybe we can have a replay of '93-'94 when clinton came in. he failed on health care and then we won in the mid-term elections and got the majority. >> after that radio show, the president joined a conference call on line to promote his

health care plan. we are just getting new video of a truck bomb that detonated in front of iraq. it killed 60 people. keep an eye on the very bottom of your screen. you're going to see a truck loaded with what appears to be bright red water tanks go out of the picture, then the explosion happens. look at that. another bomb exploded outside the foreign ministry killing another 35 people. the twin bombings were the deadliest attacks in baghdad since american troops pulled out at the end of june. look at that. well, lilten the mood a little bit. husein bolt lived up to his name. we could probably show the story four times. he completed it in 19.19 seconds in berlin at the world at electricity championship. just this past sunday, the

jamaican setd a world record in the 100-meter sprint. senator ted kennedy has sent a poignant leader to lawmakers, asking them to change the law in appointing someone temporarily. he wants the government to be able to appoint someone in his seat when he dies. we are hearing that michael jackson's burial may be delayed. the singer was supposed to be buried on august 29 on what would have been his 51st birthday. joe jackson tells tmz the burial has been pushed back to august 31st because there are things the family needs to get in order before michael can be laid to rest. the jacksons' publicist will not confirm or deny it and it is just a rumor so far. mill wathe man accused of ag

milwaukee mayor tom barrett was charged with two counts of misdemeanor. anthony peters admits he got involved. he apparently took the mayor's phone, punched him in the face and beat him with a metal bar when barrett called 911. there he is recovering from a broken hand and cuts to his face. a reality tv contestant is wanted in the questioning of the murder of his ex-wife and may actually be in canada now. that's what they're saying about ryan alexander jenkins. he is canadian. they're not calling him a suspect but they do want to question him in the death of 21-year-old jasmine fiore.

her body was found in a suitcase over the weekend. autopsy reports indicate she was strangled. she was featured on the tv show, "megan wants a millionaire." sure, it's a great way to keep up with friends and family, but the social networking site facebook also opens you up to some really annoying people! find out if you're one of them.

a social networking site, facebook, it's a great tool for

keeping up with family, friends, you wonderful viewers. but there's some things about it that are not so great. you might find yourself really sorry that you friended some folks. let's go to katherine calloway now. no one on my viewer page is like that. there are some folks on a personal basis that annoy me, though. >> i haven't been there yet because i have lots of friends and family and coworkers like you, and they've run into problems with facebook. i'm still looking for some hard and fast rules on that personal page, who you say yes or no to, but they have done some investigating here at cnn.com, and our technology editor has put together the 12 most annoying type of facebook people. first there are the tmi-ers, the ones who is, going to bed,

taking a bath. too much information about their sex life, their marital status. then there's the paparazzi people. this is the one i'm afraid of on my personal page if i get one. you go to check your page and there's a horrible picture of you at a party taken a week before. or you're laying on the beach and you weren't really posing. that's the paparazzi kind. then there's the friend patters. i love these people. most facebook people have 120 friends. but you'll find people that have 4 or 500 friends, 1,000 friends. unless you're george clooney oror sumatra -- rachelle, you probably don't have that many friends. then there's the ones that have to tell you everything they do, kind of like that holiday letter you get every year, but every

day. >> well said, katherine. i don't want to know that. what kind of facebooker are you, katherine? >> i just told you. i'm a non-facebooker. i guess i'm a moocher because i have family and friends who have it, and if i want to know how they're doing, i'll say, check on so-and-so and see how they're doing. but i'm trying to find out what the rules are if i don't accept a friendship from someone, it's okay? >> it is okay. if we're not friends in real life, you don't have to be on my facebook page. i've already said too much, haven't i? >> i don't know. i'm thinking about photographs, too, because i know my friends and their sense of humor is not always the same as, like, my mom's. >> tell us what else is popular on dot-com today? >> you're going to love this story, richelle.

caster semenya won the track record, but now they're questioning whether she's actually a woman. they're not sure. and they say it will take some time to find out whether she's a man or a woman, but i think they could find an answer very quickly. >> shame on you, katherine! >> just reading what's written. >> thanks, katherine. this story has some action fans pretty upset. the ncaa has stripped memphis of every basketball victory, every one in its 38th 2007-2008 season, and this is the reason. an ineligible player believed to be derek rhodes, who now plays for the chicago bulls, the play

was ruled ineligible because his extreme, and you guessed it, they are going to appeal. want to see some new jobs created? one north carolina restaurant sends some stimulus money his way. he just needs a loan, but tell that to the bank. how do you get money flowing to small business owners? christine romas reports. >> reporter: dinnertime in lumberton, north carolina. restaurant owner, robert redfern. he's got 35 employees, a crowded bar on weekends, a dependable banquet business. five years ago, he turned a centuries-old mule stable into this. he's confident he's got the ingredients to open another restaurant here, 35 miles north on i-95 in fayetteville.

>> i'll hire 50 people in three months if i get the money i'm looking for. >> $150,000, to be exact. >> my issue is the stimulus money everyone is talking about needs to flow through small businesses like this one. i don't want a bailout, i just want to open the door. i'll walk through it myself. sdplz b >> reporter: but so far that door is shut. we called the area's biggest small business lender and asked them why. it turns out redburn's credit score doesn't match his confidence. a spokesperson of bb and t who recently paid back its own bailout said, we would have turned him down based on his credit history. r redford admits to bumps in the road that would ruin his credit. >> they're making loans with the expectation that all of them are going to be repaid. >> reporter: that means making fewer loans to even the best am kantsz. even small business owners like

redfern who have had no trouble borrowing money in the past are being turned away. >> we're in this chicken and egg situation where the banks don't want to make those loans, but then small business owners can't get the finances they need to run their businesses properly to expand. >> the business is about half it was before the recession, but the stimulus has helped. the amount of money loaned has risen 50% since february. ever the entrepreneur, redfern doesn't have the loan but he still has the vision. >> you look at this parking lot and you see cars? >> i see a pall. >> lumberton, north carolina. people are doing it for more of our series, "money in main street." watch it tonight on our sister network, cnn.

let's check in with mike to see what the topics are today and the important stories so you can call when you get some feedback on this. >> number 1-77-tell-hln.

we continue the search for doug davis on the cell phone. he's going to talk about the tone in her voice, talk about the investigation. the ground search has been called off. also this one. an adult woman, 40-year-old woman accused of cyber bullying a 17-year-old teen on the web. this is to get back at her ex-husband. she is 40 years old. she ends up putting the 17-year-old girl's cell phone, e-mail, where she works on craigslist, the casual encounters section, so the 17-year-old gets solicited for sex by all these creeps out here. that's what's happening here. we'll take your calls on that one, 1-877-tell-hln. they could blow anthony's defense wide open.

they're saying this is the full leagues. this is what we were dealing with as we were looking for little little caylee. plenty to get to. tim miller, his lawyer, we'll have mark on today and say what did george anthony want? what was that about. we'll take your calls on that. 877-tell-hln is the number. ten minutes away. >> thank you, mike. a picture here for you. this is new video that shows thousands of people. this is the airport in libya. they are there to welcome ali mohmed al megrahi after eight years in prison. the only man convicted in the 9 1988 bombing of pan am flight 103. weig he was released early because he has cancer. doctors say he has three months to live. do you think he should be right back in prison until he dies? got lots of passionate views on

this on my hln facebook page. this is the result of our unscientific text poll, 0% think he should have been released. 100% think he should have stayed in prison. whenever you visit london, you are warned to be on guard for pickpocket but some former pickpockets have turned over a new leaf. they are slipping notes in unguarded pockets and handbags as a promotion by a british broadband provider.

about 1,000 pounds is to be given away. just because you have a limited wardrobe doesn't make you a fashion disaster. tips on how to work that little black dress for all its worth. d